The Diary Of Tilly Tierney
by dreamcloud1
Summary: This is the book of outlandish ramblings of Tilly Tierney, collected together in what is called a diary. To all who read, be prepared for fun, late nights, irritating fairies and all things supernatural, tales of lost cats and a LOT of craziness.
1. Welcome To My World

This is the book of outlandish ramblings of Tilly Tierney, collected together in what is called a diary.

To all who read, be prepared for fun, late nights, irritating fairies and all things supernatural, tales of lost cats and a LOT of craziness.

**Saturday, October 6th:**

Hello. This is me. My name is Tilly Tierney (Castor). I've just moved here to...wait for it...Moonlight Falls from Bridgeport. And before you ask me my complete life story, I can safely tell you one thing. I actually have have no idea what the hell I'm doing here.

I should probably use this time to explain a bit more about myself. I'm the daughter of Hannah Castor, one of Bridgeport's biggest celebrities. Who, incidentally, is the elder sister of Damian Castor (one of the top pop culture 'legends' in Bridgeport), who is the best friend of Cameron Mitchell (singer/songwriter). Don't get me wrong. I have dark red hair just past my shoulders, green eyes, and tend to wear modern clothes straight from the top fashion catalogues in Bridgeport. I love cats and dogs, reading, writing, exploring new places, and all things from this side of pop culture. And my favourite colour is red.

I had a great childhood and all, living in the city with lots of things for me and Mum to do (and a dog called Lea). But what's a girl like me from glamorous, bustling city of Bridgeport doing here in Moonlight Falls? When I was old enough, I decided I wanted a change from all the bustle and wanted a place to settle down a bit. People who read the Bridgeport Gazette are somehow convinced that I'll follow in my mum's footsteps, and want to be an actress with a glittering career ahead of me. People you don't even know are interested in your every move...especially the paparazzi. I mean, I like being recognized and all, but that's the price you have to pay.

And so when I came here, I changed my last name from Castor to Tierney.

Tilly Tierney, welcome to Midnight Falls.

Welcome to my world.

I've since bought a green-tiled Victorian house. I think it's great. Well, it's quiet, without the muted roar of traffic outside all the time. Which is good, considering that I'm training to be a professional author, and write books that will shoot straight to the top of the Bestsellers list. But in order to start writing, I knew I was going to have to explore Moonlight Falls more if in order to find something to write about. So I decided to head into town to see if I could find anyone to talk to. I know that Moonlight Falls is a little bit out-of-the-ordinary (understatement of the CENTURY!) so I thought it was probably best to make some new friends and explore the town a bit before I did anything too crazy.

**9:10 am:**

I parked the car outside one of the first shops I could see that looked busy, called 'Aleisters Elixirs and Sundries' and tentatively, went inside. Objects were scattered all over the place, odd-looking books that looked as though they were from Medieval times, several jars were scattered on a wooden shelf, a red telephone box was situated in the corner of a room (?) and there was stuff EVERYWHERE.

The first person I saw was a shop assistant, standing behind the counter behind a big old-fashioned cash register. She had long black hair that was brushed behind her shoulders, and was wearing the type of clothes that people here normally seemed to wear, half old-fashioned, half other-worldly. However, she looked friendly enough. So I made my way over to see her, in the hope of meeting a new acquaintance.

"Hello, can I help you with anything?" she asked, looking at me in an interested way.

I nodded, then realized I must have looked like an imbecile, especially with my modern Bridgeport fashion sense, and the fact that I was nodding but not saying anything.

"Hi there!" I exclaimed brightly as I stuck my hand out. "I'm Tilly Tierney."

"Hi, Tilly." She shook my hand. "I'm Becky Younan. Are you new to the area?"

"Yes." I replied. "I've just moved here from Bridgeport." I decided not to tell her that I was the daughter of Hannah Castor, or anyone for that matter. Besides, I had a new name and a new life, so what was the point?

Becky grinned at me. "I can tell. It's hard moving to a new town, but don't worry too much. You'll settle in soon enough."

Megan and I talked animatedly for about half an hour or so. Sure, I was new to the area, but we seemed to be getting on very well. She told me about the places around Moonlight Falls, and what places are where ("There's a bar especially for werewolves down by La Shove beach, did you know?), and I told her all about moving from Bridgeport ("It's basically a smaller version of New York City"). In fact, I didn't notice there was someone behind me, until the fairy with blue wings and a purple flowery top said, quite loudly, "Excuse me...I don't want to interrupt, but did you just say that you've moved here from Bridgeport?"

"Um, sorry?" I asked, turning round to stare at her. "Just thought you'd like to know, I have, actually. It's come as a bit of a culture shock, but I expect I'll get used to it." I forced a smile.

"Oh. Sorry." The fairy blushed, but continued. "Why has it been such a shock for you? It shouldn't be that different, should it?"

I took a deep breath in an attempt not to self-combust with exasperation. "Erm, for starters, Brideport's a lot busier than here. There's traffic there 24/7, and there are a heap of apartment buildings and everything." I shrugged. "And over here, it's much quieter, and there's a lot more space, and greenery. And I used to live with my mum and dog Lea in a high-rise apartment block, so–"

The high-pitched screech that erupted from the fairy's mouth caused several people to look in our direction in alarm. "A HIGH-RISE APARTMENT?" She continued in a quieter voice, but people still continued to stare. "Do you know how dangerous buildings like that can be? Getting stuck in the elevator doors! Having to live with all the noise and traffic all the time! No proper fresh air!" She continued with her rant, not actually looking at anyone (or me, for that matter) but with her eyes half-closed, and waving her arms around in a dramatic manner. Becky was looking as though she was having to restrain herself from slapping the fairy round the head. I myself was having a hard time trying not to do the same thing. "I must take it upon myself, Flora Goodfellow, to fly to Bridgeport, and transform it into a clean, green paradise! A place where the sun shines every day, where Sims there live in spacious houses, and where there is much happiness and smiles all around!" She opened her eyes and gazed at me thoughtfully.

"So, you're Flora." I stated, finally able to get a word in edgeways. "Where abouts are Fauna and Merryweather?"

Becky gave a snort of laughter, but managed to turn it into a cough. Flora was still looking at me, then opened her mouth to speak again, her wings fluttering madly.

"How on earth could you _live_ like that?"

I suddenly became very aware that everyone in the shop was still staring at us. Or rather, at me. So, I did the only thing I could that would make this whole situation less embarrassing for me.

I ran.

**6:30 pm:**

Okay, maybe I shouldn't have ran away like I did. Now everyone (apart from Becky, hopefully) will think that I'm a raving lunatic. Definitely not the best thing to happen to me on my first day here.

The fire in the living room is lit, and I'm just about to make myself mac and cheese for dinner, when my phone rings. Looking at the caller ID, I see it's Becky.

"Oh, hey Becky." I state, emptying the mac and cheese into a saucepan.

"Hi Tilly." She pauses, before continuing. "Look, I'm really sorry about what happened today. Flora was way out of line, and something like that isn't the best thing to welcome you to Moonlight Falls."

"It's fine, Becky." I put the saucepan on the stove and turn the element on. "This is only the first day. It could have been a lot worse."

"Well...yeah." Becky replies. "But after you ran off, you missed the best part. One of Flora's relatives heard what was happening and she told Flora off good and proper. Really loudly, too. It sounded like two mice squealing repeatedly. The whole shop was riveted."

I laugh. "I bet they were."

Hanging the phone up, I grin to myself, stirring the contents of the saucepan round and round. But I can also hear something else instead, a strange, crackling sound coming from the living room.

Oh, no.

_The living room is on fire!_

Panicking, I dial the fire service as quickly as I can, then attack the flames with a fire extinguisher. God, the flames are hot! And it doesn't help that the fire extinguisher often ceases working for a couple of seconds, and that my heart is pounding like a drum in panic. _Please let my house be saved, please let my house be saved,_ I think in a crazed frenzy, before the fireman arrives. _Thank the Lord,_ I think, watching in relief as he douses the flames.

**7:20 pm:**

As he leaves, he turns to me and says, "You should really be more careful next time."

"Yes sir." I reply. "I just don't have a smoke alarm above the fireplace installed just yet."

He grins and says, "Oh, no, that's just what I say to everyone." He laughs like a loon before shutting the front door behind him. As he walks down the front path, I can still hear him chortling.

**7:32 pm:**

I think I'll start my writing properly tomorrow. Hmm...that should be easy enough. On my first day here, I have: met a normal Sim and made an idiot of myself, met an irritating fairy who thinks Bridgeport is the hole of all holes, and accidentally set the house on fire.

Great.

**Sunday, October 7th:**

**11:30 am:**

Decided to get started on my writing today. This morning, I discovered that some idiot has shoved the bookcase right across the door of the study! I grit my teeth in frustration and sighed. Right. Guess I'll have to move it, then.

I pulled and shoved at the bookcase but I couldn't move it forwards, left, or right. In the end, I got so mad that I was about to kick it in frustration but then, the side of the bookcase moved, revealing a wide gap through to the study. A bookcase door!

**11:45 am:**

I was so shocked, I nearly ran upstairs and hid under the bed. But I managed to pull myself together, and sit down to start writing my first novel. In honour of my arrival in Moonlight Falls, I've decided to call my book 'Down the Rabbit Hole.' Which I have literally fallen into. The daughter of Hannah Castor decides to move to Moonlight Falls, town of strange and supernatural beings, from Bridgeport, the bustling city of shops, apartments, nightclubs and yellow taxis. I've decided to put it in the fiction genre.

After all, who's going to believe that it's my life story so far?

_Five hours later..._

**4:45 pm:**

Right. Finished my first novel, check. Haven't spontaneously combusted with the stress of it all, check. Have decided to explore the nightlife in Moonlight Falls tonight...if there is any at all. Which I seriously doubt. I'm decked out in my best Bridgeport finery, a light blue knee-high dress tied at the waist, and black high-heeled shoes.

**5:00 pm:**

I found myself staring at the Magic Orb ball on my desk, and ended up picking it up and shaking it to and fro. "Will I find any decent nightlife around here? And by decent, I mean proper nightclubs with flashing lights and all that jazz?"

**5:10 pm:**

I glanced at the reply. It said, 'Ask again later.'

Well, sod it. I'm going out to find some nightlife. If I am physically able to.

**6:13 pm:**

So this is the 'nightlife'. A place called 'The Toadstool' that looks exactly like its name, completely dead. Well, I always picture toadstools as some dead mushroom plants in a forest in the middle of nowhere. And as far as I can see, this place is exactly that. There's hardly anyone in here!

**6:15 pm:**

Woah.

Wait.

Is that a vampire...over there?

I take a closer look and saw that it is. A girl that looked to be in her early twenties, blonde hair pulled into plaits is standing by the stereo, examining her nails. Her blue eyes are shining in the typical way that vampires eyes' usually do, and the strangest thing about her (besides the whole vampire supernatural thing) is that she's wearing pink. Whenever I've seen vampires around, they're always wearing black. A bit depressing, really. A tingle of excitement ripples through me. I'm not a stranger to vampires, given that we used to live next door to one. I think. But still, a chance to actually meet a supernatural outside my old apartment block!

So, before I bottle out, I stand up straight and slowly meander towards her. She doesn't immediately glance up at me, but when I get near enough, she says, "Hey, there. Got any fresh plasma?"

I stop, stunned. "What?"

She looks at me, a half smirk on her face. "Just wondering. I haven't managed to find myself any plasma fruit for a few days, so I'm feeling a bit thirsty. Maybe you'll be able to remedy it."

I stare at her, and raise an eyebrow, even though inside I was feeling a tiny flicker of terror. "Well, I need each and every one of my red blood cells for transporting oxygen and nutrients, and...stuff." I flail around for an explanation, desperate to remember stuff from Biology I learned ages ago "And you could always go and raid the hospital, or something. It's not that hard."

**7:10 pm:**

Just as I think that she's going to bare her sharp white fangs and rip my throat out, she smiles at me. Properly. "At last, I've managed to find a human Sim who doesn't run away in terror when I ask that! Thank God." She looks at me, curiously. "I don't think I've seen you around before."

I breathe an inner sigh of relief. "No, I'm new here. I haven't actually met a lot of people yet...I'm Tilly Tierney." _It takes a bit of getting used to my new name,_ I think.

"Emelie van Gould." She extends a hand and I reach out to shake it, feeling surprised at how cool her hand is. "We run the Van Gould café up near the hills."

"Oh. Wow!" Why can't I have something cool to say about what I do? Still I guess it can't hurt. So I say, "I'm an author. I've just moved here from Bridgeport."

Emelie looks surprised. "Really?" Her eyes widen. "That's so cool. My cousin Emmy lives in Bridgeport."

So _that_ explains why there are a lot of vampires in Bridgeport.

"There's still a lot I have to learn about over here." I admit. "And it's not easy when you come from Bridgeport, which, according this fairy Flora Goodfellow I met the other day, makes it sound like a complete dump."

Emelie shakes her head. "Typical Flora. She means well, but is one of the most annoying people on God's green earth. She and her fellow fairies are always on about spreading sunshine into other Sim's lives, and twitter on and on. It's enough to drive anyone mad."

Before I can say anything else, though, a dark-eyed male vampire appears behind her, with brown hair and looking as though he's just stepped off the cover of the Bridgeport Gazette's Fashion Weekly. "Emelie, we're off now."

"Oh, all right." She waves at me. "I'll see you round, Tilly Tierney."

"See you." I lift my arm and wave at her, as she leaves with the other vampire.

**11:45 pm:**

Dragged myself to bed feeling depressed. When will I manage to settle in and start making friends properly. I'm so wound up that I don't think I'll ever be able to fall asleep. Oh, this is terrible. I'll be so tired in the morning that I won't be able to write my...Zzzzz.

**Wednesday, 10th October**

**10:30 am:**

I've started writing my second novel, entitled Confessions of a Bridgeport Girl. It's going well at the moment. I think that pouring my emotions and literary soul into it has helped a lot. True, most of the story centers around Lea's habit of riding up and down in the lifts for entertainment, Mum's TV series Blue Door Diaries, about a theatre group, and that time we got burgled at three in the morning, but I think it reads rather well.

**10:55 am:**

Found myself absent-mindedly checking the date on my computer and realised that it's a full moon tomorrow. I'm wondering if I should go out tomorrow night. I really actually do want to go out to explore a bit more of the town. Given that I haven't actually seen much apart from the alchemy store, the Toadstool, the park next door, or my own house, I may as well. On the other hand, I don't really want to end up attacked by a rampaging zombie or mauled by a werewolf.

**11:00 am:** Oh, I'm going out tomorrow. And maybe later this afternoon, given that I finish my novel.

**3:35 pm:**

After I managed to finish Confessions of a Bridgeport Girl, I decided to go for a drive around town in order to explore a few things. Drove away from the town towards an area near the mountains...wait, what was that? I put the brakes on and get out of the car to have a look round. What's that, nestled by the trees?

No, I'm not seeing things. It's a real gypsy caravan! All painted red with tassels and colourful by the windows, and a pink and orange striped roof.

**3:40 pm:**

Hmm...this will be good. Now, I'm still a bit skeptical about fortune tellers. They say one thing and mean another. They take your money and don't tell you anything useful, like when you'll eventually fall in love, or come into great windfalls of money.

But this is Moonlight Falls, right? And maybe fortune tellers aren't ALL scam artists.

Oh, hell. I may as well give it a shot. Hopefully at the end of the week, I won't be that girl who watches cheesy rom-coms late at night and ends up sitting on the sofa eating ice cream out of a carton.

(Okay. Maybe I've done that once. Or twice. But hey, we all do it! Right?)

_15 minutes later..._

Wow. This lady really knows her stuff. I didn't even have to tell her my name or the situation I'm in, because she seemed to know it all! She's staring intently with her eyes half-shut into her crystal ball which is filled with swirling mist, and hasn't moved for the past five minutes.

In fact...she looks like she's not even breathing.

**3:55 pm:**

Oh, God. She's not dead, is she? Maybe I'd better prod her, just to check.

**3:56 pm:**

"Um, hello?"

No answer.

**3:57 pm:**

A surge of panic and horror rises up in me, so that I struggle to take a breath. I've killed her! With my sorrowful situation about moving into a new town, and my eruption of misadventures I've experienced since I got here, it's no wonder she's keeled over! I'll get done by the police! Sentenced to life in prison! I can see it now, the judge sentencing my fate for the murder of an innocent fortune teller with one loud bang of his gavel. The citizens of Moonlight Falls staring evilly at me as I'm led away, handcuffed, by two burly police officials. I'll–

"So, Tilly–"

"Aargh!" I gasp, nearly falling off the pouffle I was seated on.

"It seems to me that since you got here, you just want to fit it with everyone. You want to be noticed, and not only by those who read your books. Supernaturals who live here seem to have a pretty good idea about new arrivals in the town, and so far they don't seem to paying you much attention. As I stared intently into the crystal ball, I saw the troublesome myriad of events that you have experienced since you have come here, which has told me..."

With that, she rambles away for forty centuries, using worlds like _occult, psychic _and _Inner Eye_. I try my best to follow along, but it's still very confusing.

**4:15 pm:**

"And that's why you never ask dead people for health tips." she concludes.

"But..." I stutter. "Weren't you supposed to tell me about when I'll finally settle in?" I asked desperately. "When I'll make friends and start living a better life than I have been since I got here?"

"Oh, don't worry about _that,_ dear." she says in a comforting tone, rearranging a deck or cards. "Things will get better in about a week, so don't worry too much."

**4:17 pm:**

They _better_.


	2. Plasma Fruit And All Things Vamprific

******Hi everyone! Hope you enjoy reading the second chapter of Tilly's diary (reviews are always welcome!) Anyway, on with the story...**

**Friday, 2nd November:**

**12:13 pm:**

Coincidentally, in a week, things actually did get better. It's actually been about three weeks, but slowly, I'm making progress with meeting new people around town, and actually getting to know the town. Currently, my total friend count (well, really special acquaintances) stands at three. I had gotten to know Emelie van Gould quite well, along with Becky Younan, and a guy called Dwayne Wolff, who, incidentally, is a werewolf. I came to this realization (not only from his last name) after watching him run around the lawn in a weird way when I went to visit him one day, before he then began playing a game of fetch with his teenage son.

**12:16 pm:**

Anyway. It's the full moon again this week. Last week...and the week before, I actually can hardly bear to admit this due to embarrassment, but I didn't dare to venture out of my house for fear of being attacked by a zombie, or something. Although, as I glanced out the window occasionally, I did see some dark shapes shambling down the road as if they were sleepwalking. But tonight, things are going to be different.

**12:32 pm:**

Found myself (again) staring at the Magic 8 Ball placed on my desk. It's been there from when I moved in, placed there by I don't know who. Maybe it was a sign. A sign telling me to pick it up and shake it, for the truth to be revealed. About what, I wasn't sure, but I did it anyway.

"Should I go out tonight, when it's the full moon? Will I make amazing discoveries about things that I had no idea that previously existed until now?"

I waited while I swirled it around, then the answer flashed in the little window.

"A thousand times YES!"

Well, hell.

**7:10 pm:**

Emelie and I decided to meet at the Red Velvet Lounge that evening. I wasn't sure what to wear when it came to occasions such as these. I mean, yes tonight was a dress-and-heels occasion, but what if we were attacked by something? Emelie would be able to run away easily, but I'd be stumbling along, with all the grace of a zombie sprinting along the street. (Can they do that?)

After much pacing up and down my bedroom and yelling at my wardrobe in frustration, I finally selected my outfit, a purple and black dress with red shoes. I locked the door and the front gate (after all, you never know what supernatural being may stumble upon your house in the dead of night) and drove to the Red Velvet Lounge. Emelie was already there, waiting in the shadows of the building. She looked more mysterious in the light of the full moon, with this eerie glow surrounding her. When she saw me, she waved and came over to the car.

"Hello, human." she greeted me.

"Hey, my vampire friend." I replied.

"How about we go in the back way and get a drink? It's mayhem country in the front room." she told me, casting a quick glance in the direction of the door. "And if it's not too much trouble, I need your help with something."

"Yeah, sure." I said, as we walked towards the back entrance. (It's only common knowledge that you don't just say no to a vampire, right?)

_In the Red Velvet Lounge..._

**8:01 pm:**

She's right. It's pretty busy in here. Some werewolf is at the karaoke machine is howling away to 'Once In A Blue Moon', with all his fellow wolf pack members joining in for the chorus. Dark silhouettes of Sims, fairies and God knows what else are all round the room, talking loudly to their friends. Emelie and I are seated at the bar, her with a glass of plasma juice, and me peering round the room, seeing if there's anyone else here who I know. Obviously not.

**8:05 pm:**

"So, what do you need my help with?" I ask, trying not to appear morbidly curious, which I am.

Emelie takes a gulp of plasma juice and turns to me. "Okay. I'm down to my last plasma fruit pack, and I need you to help me raid the grocery store for more."

My mouth falls open in shock. Seeing my expression, Emelie rolls her glowing eyes. "Oh, come on. You were the one that told me to go and do it in the first place."

"I didn't mean take me along as an accomplice!" I blurt. "And what will we do if someone catches us?"

"They won't." She shakes her head. "Sensible of the store owners to close at eleven pm, so we just go in and help ourselves."

"All right, then." I sigh.

**8:21 pm:**

"I'm not so sure that's such a good idea." I hear a high, familiar voice to my left say clearly.

I turn around in my seat and groan inwardly. There sits bloody Flora Goodfellow, her wings fluttering slowly to and fro and stirring her drink, the perfect picture of innocence. When her eyes land on me, they widen in surprise. "Hey, you're the Bridgeport girl!"

"It's Tilly. Tilly Tierney" I state, exasperatedly. "What are you doing here?"

She huffs. "I'm just here for a bit of rest before I go back home for our monthly full moon garden party." She sips her drink again. "What are _you_ doing here?"

"She's with me." Emelie slings her head around in Flora's direction and bares her teeth at her, in what I think is a smile. "And right now, we've both got some business to attend to, so we'll be off." She starts getting up from her seat, and I follow her.

"But–" Flora squeaks, looking put out. "If you go and–" she lowers her voice dramatically, "–_steal_ plasma fruit from the grocery, it's one of the most awful crimes a person could commit! Why don't you just go and buy some, like all rightful people would do?"

**9:00 pm:**

Emelie turns round to her again, her face still set in that terrifying smile. "You know, maybe you're right." She pretends to deliberate. "Maybe, instead of stealing plasma fruit, I should just suck every last drop of blood out of your sparkling, righteous drippy body right here and now." She lowers her voice, sending a shiver down my spine. "But lucky for you, it's a good thing that I never drink fairy plasma...because I find it absolutely _disgusting._"

And, waving a hand at me to join her, she exits through the front door, leaving a strangely quiet Flora behind.

**11:45 pm:**

I never realized how much fun it was to do something that is way out of my comfort zone. And yes, I know it's a terrible thing to raid a grocery store in the middle of the night, but it's also...well, _fun._ I'm sitting in the trolley, choosing from the best plasma fruit types, while Emelie pushes me along. I guess that having supernatural strength has its advantages. As we whiz down the identical, green and white striped aisles at a hundred kilometres an hour, I'm just able to turn my head and say to Emelie, "Hey, I guess if we do get caught and thrown into the clink, you'll be able to choose the best plasma from any of the inmates there."

"This plan has no downsides!" We stuff our fists in our mouth to hide our giggles.

**12:05 am:**

We're outside, and depositing our plasma loot into the back of Emelie's car.

"I think that's all of them." I say, shutting the boot of the car. "Do plasma fruits actually taste like real blood?"

Emelie gives me a strange smile. "Wouldn't you like to know?"

I nod, then shrug. "Of course, I mean I'm sure it wouldn't taste that nice to a normal Sim like me, but to a vampire it would, wouldn't it? I've always wondered what it's like to be a vampire..."

In future, I should really learn to think before I speak. Any sane person would be able to guess why.

"Really?" Emelie gives me that strange smile again. "Well, it's no use to wonder when you can go ahead and achieve."

I suddenly realize that she's taken my arm in her grip, and that her teeth are dangerously near it.

"Wait, what are you doing?" My voice jumps about four octaves higher with a mixture of fright and apprehension.

Emelie gives me a look, like she's thinking, _you're a few currents short of a fruitcake, Tilly._

"I'm just doing what you said." Without hesitation, she bites down onto my wrist, which feels like it's being injected with a warm, thick liquid. She releases my arm and steps back, saying something which I don't take in because of the pain in my wrist.

"Owwww! Emelie, that hurts!" I wail, clutching my wrist. "And I never said that I wanted to be a vampire! It was a hypothetical situation!" I force down the panic which is threatening to overtake me. "What's going to happen to me?"

**12:15 am:**

She steps back a bit and glances at me. "Don't worry, you won't die, or anything. In about three days, you'll become a vampire. Basically, the bite won't hurt, but may irritate a bit. And as the venom spreads through your bloodstream, it will feel a bit like someone's lit a fire inside you." She says this casually and shrugs her shoulders. "Look, if you really hate being a vampire, I'll buy you an anti-venom cure, and you'll go back to being the same old Tilly Tierney."

**12:20 am:**

And before I can say anything else, she disappears into the night, leaving me alone with my aching wrist, her car, its keys, and a trunk full of plasma fruit.

**Saturday, 3rd November**

**10:27 am:**

That bite itches ever so slightly. It's enough to resist the urge to scratch it, though. It might possibly make some good material for a new book...Vampirism and All Things Supernatural. Maybe it's not such a bad thing. I'll have to wait it out.

**10:29 am:**

Becky came round this morning to say hi, and to tell me that she told the owner of the Consignment Store where to stick it. "I'd just had it up to _here_–" she held her hand up next to her face, "with him continuing to let fairies into my store so that 'business would be boosted'. All they ever did was shriek about fairy dust and the correct way to use an alchemy station." She shook her head. "It was exhausting!"

"Right." I didn't tell her that I'd already bought an alchemy station, which was sitting in the garage. I'm finding it quite useful actually. I have had a couple of mishaps, but it shouldn't matter too much. The garage walls and ceiling needed decorating, anyway.

"Speaking of which, could you please take a look at this?" I asked her, opening the door onto the front porch. Beside me stood a wooden object, which looked like a broom stand, but I couldn't be sure. "I don't know what it is."

Becky came out of the house and stared first at the broom stand, then at me. "Since there's a broom leaning against it, it would seem obvious, Tilly!"

I looked again and saw she was right. My eyes had adjusted to the morning sun and I could clearly see it. "Erm, a broom, right? You use it for sweeping floors and things."

She looked as if she was trying not to laugh. "_This_ isn't just any old broom." Then, she lowered her voice. "This is a magic broom."

I stared at her. "What? You mean, it can fly? Or something?"

"Go on, give it a try." She picked it up from the stand and handed it to me. I stared at it dubiously for a moment, before gingerly getting on it and grasping the handle with both hands. "Now, tell it where you want to go. I suggest somewhere like Zoomsweeper Test Track, where you can really get the hang of it."

Oh dear. This was _not_ going to end up well.

"How am I supposed to know where to–AAARGH!"

**10:36 pm:**

I was frozen with terror as the broom suddenly shot forwards, down the street, away from Becky and the safety of home, and towards the high possibility of my impending death. Gripping the broom handle so tightly my knuckles turned white, I caught glimpses of houses, trees, and Sims as they flashed by. They didn't seem to take much notice of a fatal situation potentially about to occur.

Promptly, I felt the broom slowing down, the stopped completely out the front of a green park, which had a small arena set in the middle. I dismounted my broom and shakily walked over to it, my legs feeling unsteady. Hmm. Now that I had inspected it, it didn't seem that dangerous.

I thought I'd take a quick ride round the arena, just to test the broom out, then hopefully I'll be able to get back home in one piece.

**10:42 pm:**

Just one little ride, then home again.

**11:10 am:**

I underestimated how much fun this is...wheeee! Once you get the hang of it, it's not that bad at all, really. I wonder how many Sims know how to ride a broom?

**11:13 am:**

I wonder if there's a Moonlight Falls Quidditch team that I could join?

_Back at home..._

**4:32 pm:**

Dwayne Wolff phoned me this afternoon as I was watering my Magic Jellybean plants near the front door. He said that there was a party on at his house this evening, I was invited, and he'd invited some more of his friends. He hung up before I could ask him what to wear.

**4:38 pm:**

I decided to wear my casual pink and white striped dress with tights and my favourite pair of purple ballet flats. As I made my way out the door, I hesitated at the Magic Jellybean plants, then quickly grabbed a lilac spotted one and popped it in my mouth. It tasted a little unusual, but what's the harm? It's just a jellybean!

And besides, I've got a party to go to!

**3:12 am:**

Party such fuuun. I tink something in that Magic Jellybean made me v. buzzed up. Dwayne and I did the twist an we fell oveer. Loud music and looots of people, made me feel grate. He has such a cute spotted dog and I wanted it so I bought it home wiv me.

**Sunday, 4th November:**

**9:30 am:**

Oh, gosh. I never knew that Magic Jellybeans could mess with your head. Like magic mushrooms, but not like that at all. I think I'll steer clear of them for a long while.

**9:32 am:**

And there's something else. The heat in my bloodstream! It's like what Emelie said, my blood feels like it's on fire! What have I gotten myself into?

**9:33 am:**

I rub my eyes and glance at my clock on my bedside table. Right. Time for me to get up and started on my writing. This time, I plan to write in detail, about the joys of plasma fruit and fairy dust, so that other Sims like are able to get a taste of the supernatural world. However this could be tricky, as I'm only just beginning to understand the world I've moved into a month ago. On the other hand...I think I'll just laze here for another five minutes.

**9:36 am:**

Wait. What's that scuffling sound I hear that's coming nearer and nearer to my bedroom door? I stay still for a moment, wondering who or what it could be.

A werewolf, ready to maul me to pieces? A zombie, about to eat my brain?

_What is it?_

**9:38 am:**

Then, an small, adorable, black and white Dalmation dog pokes its head round the door and stares at me, as if waiting for me to fetch it a chewy bone or something.

What the _hell_ is a Dalmation doing in my house? Perhaps it's one of the hundred and one Dalmations? Maybe it got lost?

**9:40 am:**

Oh no.

I've remembered now. Last night, at Dwayne Wolff's party. He showed me his dog who had just had puppies, and asked me if I'd like to adopt one. So of course I did. After all, the puppies were so adorable and tiny!

And now, that adorable, tiny dog is beginning to chew yesterdays' paper, ripping it into shreds of newsprint before spreading it all round the room, and rolling round on top of them.

Lovely.

**9:51 am:**

What _have_ I gotten myself into?

**Monday, 5th November:**

**12:34 pm:**

I've decided to name my dog Lydia, as there aren't many dogs around that I've seen with non-petlike names, and I want to break the stereotype. As soon as I've finished writing Chapter Two of my new book, 'Vampirism And All Things Supernatural', I'm taking Lydia out for a walk to the local park. It's about time I beheld the great outdoors with an air of interest and awe, rather than with an air of desperation, looking for things to write about.

Terribly boring, I know.

**2:33 pm:**

The heat in my bloodstream still hasn't died down, or changed. The good news is, it's a cloudy day today. I'm standing beside the park fountain, watching Lydia as she dashes about chasing after nothing, then tries to catch her tail in her mouth.

I don't even notice there's someone behind me until a voice says, "Cute dog. Is it yours?"

Turning around, I see a tall, tanned guy with dark floppy hair and brown eyes looking at me expectantly, as if waiting for an answer. He's wearing fashionable, everyday clothing and it takes all my willpower not to stand there gazing at him open-mouthed, like an imbecile.

**2:43 pm:**

Instead, I smile at him and say, "Yes, that's my dog Lydia. I got her a few days ago." I nod as if to make a point, while making a mental note to look in the dictionary once I get home and look up the word 'attractive'. I'll be surprised if I don't find a picture of his face next to it.

He smiles back at me–(_wow, he's got an amazing smile, _I think)–and says, "I like dogs. I used to have one once when I was a child, a dog called Bear. Not a bear called Dog."

I giggle. Lydia has taken to staring intently at him as though she's never seen anything more interesting in her life. "So, who are you?" I ask.

"I'm Ben Harrison." he replies. "I've just moved here from Lucky Palms for a new start, and everything. I'm starting school next week, as a teacher." He holds his hand out for me to shake, which I do.

"I'm Tilly Tierney." I explain. "I'm a writer for all genres, including historical." (_Why did I say that? Why? I don't even know anything about history!_)

**2:45 pm:**

Ben looks impressed. "You write historical books? I love history."

I have absolutely no idea where I'm going with this, however, I plough on. "That's true." I say proudly. "I've acually met up with..." I desperately cast my mind around for a name, and it lands on Frida Goth, who is an actual historian. "Frida Goth. We've actually discussed the idea for an upcoming historical story about someone called Ariel Moro, who, along with the help of a child vampire, managed to uncover the mystery of who killed several of her ghost friends." I finish and glance at him, beaming.

**3:52 pm:**

"Gosh." He pauses for a couple of seconds. "You mean, Frida Goth, the well-known historical author, who lives here in Moonlight Falls?

I beam and nod, though on the inside I'm praying he'll just go along with it.

"Frida Goth, who died in a house fire in 1992?"

_Back at home..._

**4:10 pm:** Oh my God. I have no chance with him at all now. I've completely blown it. He _must_ have known I was lying to impress...but still! This is awful. I feel like such a–

**4:15 pm:** Wow. This _change_ has suddenly come over me, a bit like a part of me has died, but not. My blood isn't hot anymore. Instead, I crave something, like a thirst.

Something like...blood?

**4:18 pm:**

I think I'd better ring up Emelie, and ask her to bring over that trunkful of plasma fruit. Pronto.

After all, vampires like us had better stick together, right?

* * *

**So there you have it! PS. I added something in here relating to one of my other stories, so if you can guess what it is, check it out if you want to! Also what do you think will become of Tilly and Ben...?**


	3. Full Moon Frivolity

**Hello my dear readers! Sorry I haven't updated in a while (with Christmas preparations and all) but here I am again. I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas! (I did.)**

**:)**

* * *

**Thursday, 15th November:**

**9:40 am:**

For the last week or so, everything should have been normal. You know. Wake up, suck on a plasma fruit or juice pack, fuss over Lydia, get down to writing, or, rather, finishing my book. Keep in touch with friends, research alchemy, or recently, work in my garden. (I don't even find gardening that much fun, but I only do it for the sake of alchemy. I am a slave to my craft).

**9:43 am:**

True, I did pull the first plant I grew out by the roots accidentally-on-total-purpose, but frankly, my dear diary, I don't give a damn, because I have more important things on my mind. Like a certain desirable somebody by the name of Ben Harrison, for instance. Oh, Ben. One day, you'll end up looking my way, and decide that I'm absolutely sensational, and that we have no other option but to be together. I'll stare into your beautiful brown eyes, and you'll smile at me lovingly and say–

**9:45 am:**

"Tilly?"

My mind snaps back to reality. There's a voice, saying my name. Who is it?

I walk to the front door and open it a crack. Emelie and Becky are standing on the doorstep, grinning broadly when they see me. (I introduced the two of them last full moon when I invited them round to my house for a full moon party, and they clicked.)

"Hey guys." I pull the door open. "What are you both doing here?"

"You. Me. Becky. Intervention. Now." Emelie grabs me by the arm and hustles me into the living room. Becky shuts the front door behind us and steps over Lydia, who is lying on the floor chewing her toy bone.

**9:51 am:**

"What's going on?" I ask, pulling my arm from Emelie's strong grasp and sitting on the sofa. "Why do we need to have an intervention?"

"Because we want to know what the deal with you and this Ben is." Becky answers, sitting down on my right. "He's pretty much all you ever talk about." Emelie agrees, perching on the arm of the sofa.

"He is not!" I protest. "I talk about lots of other things, too! Like..." I flounder round. "I've decided to get a kitty companion for Lydia, so she won't be lonely!"

"You never told us that." Becky says, looking puzzled.

"And I bought myself a new skeleton closet the other day, and decided to write a feature about that!" I straighten myself up, proudly and look at the two of them.

"That's right, you told us about that." Emelie said, a grin unfurling on her face. "_The Best Of Bonehilda._ You gave us a draft of it to read. However, instead of the name 'Bonehilda', you wrote the name '_Benhilda." _Emelie puts her face closer to mine. _"Benhilda,_ Tilly."

**9:55 am:**

Shit.

"Okay, you're right." I throw my hands in the air in frustration. "I won't ever talk about Ben again. Well, not in your presence."

Emelie looks thoughtful. "You know, I think the only way for you to stop talking about him is if you two get together."

"What?" I stare at her in disbelief. "But that's crazy! I mean, we're really good friends now and all, but still, what if he doesn't like me as much as I like him?"

"Then, that's simple." Becky throws Emelie an amused glance. "Throw a great party, get you two alone together, and there'll be nothing stopping you!"

**10:04 am:**

Anyway, the long and short of it is that in order to get romantic with Ben, I'm going to throw a full moon house party in the next few days (with the help of Becky and Emelie), invite a heap of people that Ben doesn't know (therefore, he'll have no choice but to stick with me, as Becky said), and hope to God that everything turns out all right.

**10:06 am:**

There's one catch though. What if he turns into a zombie or werewolf halfway through and decided to maul all the guests? I have no idea if he's a Supernatural being or not. You can never tell. Apart from Dwayne–that's pretty obvious with the way he walks and the fact that playing a game of fetch is his favourite pastime.

**10:10 am:**

Right. Will get party preparations underway. (True, the party isn't for three days, but I don't want to screw this up!)

_Half an hour later..._

**10:40 am:**

Writing the guest list is so boring...and tiring. I've put down everyone I can think of, but keep crossing names of the list because either they're so irritating I can't stand to be within ten metres of them (Flora Goodfellow) or I know for a fact they'd only come for free food and entertainment, then leave ten minutes later.

In the end, I've narrowed it down to:

Me

Becky

Emelie

Ben (I'm drawing hearts around his name for good luck)

Dwayne

Erica (Dwayne's wife)

Dante Morganthe, one of Emelie's vampire friends

Pip Goodfellow (who is the only one of the Goodfellows I've found to be nice. I think he deserves a gold medal for putting up with Flora 24/7)

**10:50 am:**

All this intellectual social stuff is very tiring. I'm going to have to ride my broom to the Test Track again and let off a bit of steam before going back to my book and changing all the 'Benhildas' to 'Bonehildas'.

Hopefully this whole party will go down without a hitch. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

**Sunday, 18th November**

**4:30 pm:**

I think I'm about to have a nervous breakdown. Becky and Emelie turned up earlier beforehand to help organise the decorations, and the house looks great. Music is playing and the food is served on a buffet table for all the guests...that is, if they turn up. Which, hopefully, they will.

**4:45 pm:**

Must stop now, have just heard the doorbell ring. First guest, and time to start the party!

**5:00 pm:**

The full moon has just risen, and nobody has turned into a zombie or werewolf yet. Thank God! Ben rang before and asked if he could bring someone with him, which I said was totally OK. It'll just be one of his guy mates or something, ready for a party. Plenty of other guests have all turned up, including Emelie's friend Dante Morganthe, who I have to admit is rather good-looking (but nowhere near as good-looking as Ben).

**5:10 pm:**

It's grown steadily darker outside, along with my worry–Ben _still_ isn't here!

Surely it can't take him that long to get ready?

Wait, I think the doorbell's ringing. I'll go and see who it is.

**5:17 pm:**

It's Ben, standing on the doorstep with...a girl with shoulder-length brown hair, wearing a short pink skirt and pink and white tank top. She's looking at me with a dubious expression, as if she's thinking I'd pounce on her and suck her blood. Not to worry though, Ben's smiling at me.

"Hi, Tilly! Sorry we're so late, Megan got a bit held up." he says, as I stand back to usher him and the girl inside.

"Yeah, no problem, not at all." I say, my voice an octave higher from nerves. And worry. _Who is that girl?_

"Looks like a great party." he comments enthusiastically, as Dwayne suddenly appears in the hallway, a newspaper in his mouth, and begins to rip it into shreds.

**5:20 pm:**

As Ben is about to make his way into the living room, along with _that girl,_ I sidle up to him and say as casually as I can, "Oh, by the way, who did you bring with you?" I'm desperately praying that she'll be his sister, or a good friend of his.

Ben turns to me and says, "That's Megan. She's my–"

"Good friend?" I interject, my voice rising with the stress of it all.

He looks at me oddly. "No." He replies, and I just about collapse with relief. So she must be his sister then...even though they look nothing alike. "She's my–"

_Or maybe she's adopted?_

"–girlfriend."

**5:30 pm:**

Managed to find Becky and Emelie dancing to 'Lay A Little Sunshine' by BG5 and dragged them into the kitchen for an emergency drink of plasma nectar. Barely a minute has passed, and I'm filling them in with all the disastrous details. This party is going on a rapid downward spiral because Dwayne has now turned into a fully-fledged werewolf and is running round in the garden with Lydia, we're nearly out of plasma nectar, and..._Ben has a girlfriend._

"What?" Emelie growled when I told her. "That shallow prick of a guy thinks that a girl named Megan Rumpp is better to hang round with than Tilly?"

"How do you know her name?" Becky asks.

Emelie grins. "I may have fed off her once or twice come the full moon."

"Guys, what do I do?" I wail. "Now this party has all been for nothing. No guy will ever want to come within ten feet of me."

Becky considers for a few seconds. "Well, you could always attempt to–"

"There is no way in hell that I'm going to attempt to break the two of them up." I finish, cutting her off. "It never works in the movies, so why would it work here?"

**5:41 pm:**

Emelie's face breaks into a grin. "I've got the perfect idea." Before I can say anything else, she steers me by the shoulders into the living room. Ben's–urgh–_girlfriend_ is now making out with him in the corner of the living room, for everyone to see, and the rest of the guests are dancing, laughing and talking. Apart from Dante Morganthe, who is standing in the corner of the room by himself, slowly pouring himself another glass of plasma nectar.

Emelie twitches her head in the direction of Ben. "Make him jealous." she hisses, before pushing me in the direction of Dante.

"But–"

She winks at me, then heads in the direction of Pip Goodfellow, who is entertaining Becky and Erica by playing with his magic wand, and I'm left in the company of Dante Morganthe.

Dante glances up at me, and grins. "Great party, Tilly." he comments, swirling his glass of plasma nectar round. "I must also say that you look especially beguiling by the light of the full moon."

I raise my eyebrow and point at his glass. "How many of those have you had?"

"This is my fifth." he remarks. "I know it's usually impossible for vampires to get drunk, but since it's full moon, that part seems to have changed a bit."

I giggle, brushing a strand of auburn hair away from my face. "Well, yeah, I guess so." I quickly glance up to see if Ben is watching, but he and Megan are still lost to the world.

**6:47 pm:**

An hour has passed, and so far:

* Ben and Megan have disappeared somewhere.

* A group of zombies have stumbled upon the party (no pun intended) and are now dancing happily along to

'Zombies On The Lawn' from 'Plants Vs. Zombies'.

* Pip appears to have had inhaled a bit too much fairy dust and is now sitting in the corner of the room and singing a song about Forty Shades of Green.

* And Dante and I are still in conversation, laughing a lot. (A light to medium amount of flirting may have been involved, too, from both parties.

**6:51 pm:**

Emelie and Becky glance over in my direction and both give me the thumbs up. I'm not sure where on earth this whole 'make-Ben-jealous' thing is supposed to go, so I may as well continue socializing, I mean, flirting, with Dante.

**7:15 pm:**

The room is starting to empty out as the guests start to go home. Many congratulate me on such a great full moon party (yuss!) which is a huge boost to my self-esteem and social skills. Dwayne is led away on a leash by Erica, who thanks me for the party, and wants to know where I got Lydia's toy bouncy ball. Pip shrinks himself down to a minature version of himself, then flies out the door. Dante gives me a hug (!) when he leaves, winks at me and says, "Hope to see you around soon, Tilly."

**7:22 pm:**

Hmm. Actually, he _is_ very good looking...

Which reminds me. Where's Ben? And Megan?

**7:25 pm:**

Becky and Emelie are staying downstairs to help clean up while I go on a search upstairs for Ben. And Megan too, while I'm at it. I hope she hasn't managed to hoover him up with her lips mid-makeout, or anything.

I reach the top of the stairs, then nearly fall back down them in shock. It's so dark up here apart from the faint moonlight streaming through the windows, and..._there's a figure sitting by the door!_

Slowly, I move towards the light switch, terror building inside me, then I quickly flick the light on.

"_Ben?"_

"_Tilly?"_

"What on earth are you doing up here?" I ask him. "Didn't you enjoy the party?"

He looks at me. "No, no, of course I did." he says, with a fake smile. Then, he sighs and runs his hand through his hair.

"Oh." I know I should probably ask him what's wrong, but that would be a bit awkward if he didn't want to say. Even so, I can't help adding, slightly vindictively, "Where's your girlfriend, then?"

Ben blinks at me. "She, erm, left about half an hour ago."

**7:30 pm:**

I hear the front door close downstairs, and know that Becky and Emelie must have left. But I can hardly process anything for the startled feeling coursing through me.

"I–wait–what do you mean, she left?" I ask, surprised, sitting down beside him. Then I think of something. Oh, help.

Maybe she's seen me giving Ben the eye and left in a fit of jealousy?

Ben shakes his head, and even in the dark I can see he's going red with embarrassment. "She, erm, wanted me to, you know."

I look quizzically at him. "No, I don't know."

He sighs, then lowers his voice to a whisper, although there's nobody else around.

"She wanted me to have sex with her in the shower."

**7:34 pm:**

It takes all my willpower not to gag with shock. Oh my God. _She_ wanted him to...to...in _my_ shower! _My shower!_

Ben is looking at me again, sadly. "I'm so sorry, Tilly."

In a shocked daze, I shake my head. "No, it's all right. I mean, of course it's not, but...Oh my God, Ben." I can barely keep the disbelief from my voice. "Why?"

He sighs again, and lets his face fall into his hands. "I don't think she really wanted to go out with me at all. She was just looking for some cheap..." He lets the word hang in the air. "Entertainment."

**7:41 pm:**

I feel sick.

"But it wouldn't have worked anyway." He takes a nervous breath before continuing, then glances at me seriously. "Tilly, I'm going to tell you something that I've never told anyone else before."

I nod, waiting to hear what it could be.

"Tilly, I'm...I'm...gay."

* * *

**Wow...bet you didn't see that one coming! I also have a few more surprises lined up for the next chapter, PLUS a 'special guest' appearance!**

**Also I have a prompt for anyone who wants to do it! It is to write about:**

**What exactly do you think went down between Megan and Ben when they went upstairs? It can be from each other's POV (though that is entirely optional).**

**Keep smiling!**


	4. Lost Cats And Skeletons In The Closet

**Hi everyone! I do hope you like the latest chapter of Tilly's diary! I've added a few surprises in here as well as a 'special guest' appearance...read and enjoy!**

**Also, a special shout-out to Heart of the Wind for continually positive and uplifting reviews :)**

**Friday, 16th November**

**9:05 am:**

I'm still partly numb with shock after the events of last night, at the full moon party. Megan ditching Ben, Ben coming out to me, and...just, _wow._

I certainly wasn't expecting that. Quite amazing how a simple event backfires in a very bizarre way.

**9:08 am:**

Why is it that nearly all of the good-looking guys turn out to be gay? Now, if someone knew the answer to this question, I'd be eternally grateful.

Basically, Ben stayed afterwards for about an hour and we'd had a good heart-to-heart talk. He told me that he was scared of how people would react when they found out he was gay. He said that he was scared of what they'd say, the looks he'd get thrown at him, and he didn't know what to do. So he'd decided to act straight until he could figure it out. He'd met Megan a couple of months ago, when she was working at the consignment store (before Becky started) and it went from there. But, he'd said, he never intended to go the whole way at the party. She'd wanted him to, he'd panicked and said no, she got huffy and ditched him. Well, that's how I pieced it together.

**9:17 am:**

And he also made me promise to "be his secret keeper", which, to be honest, sounds like something out of Harry Potter. So I said I would.

God, what am I going to say to Emelie and Becky?

**12:40 pm:**

I've written some more of 'The Best Of Bonehilda', and am feeling extremely positive about it. Hopefully in the near future it has a slight chance of becoming a best-seller. True, it's only about two hundred and fifty words or so, but maybe it could be slotted into a book of short stories, or something.

Thank goodness skeletons don't seem to be able to read. And that they don't seem to be able to figure out how to work the bookcase door.

**12:43 pm:**

I'm just contemplating whether I should go and mix up a bottle of something in my alchemy station, when there's a knock on the door. I hurriedly shove open the bookcase door and head down the hallway towards the knocking. As I get closer, I hear something else...a cat meowing?

**12:45 pm:**

I open the door, and am greeted by the sight of a man standing on the porch, with an 'Animal Shelter' badge sewn onto the pocket of his grey uniform. He's holding a black and white cat with the greenest eyes I've ever seen.

"Tilly Tierney?" Both the man and cat glance at me expectantly, waiting for an answer.

"Yes." I say, quickly. "And this must be the cat I've adopted from the shelter?" I glance down at the cat and smile. It's just so adorable, what with its green eyes and everything.

"Yep." The man carefully puts the cat down, which begins to slowly walk around, sniffing at everything. "He doesn't have a name yet, so feel free to call him what you like. He's a bit of a strange cat, but you'll do fine with him." the man says, winking at me.

**12:50 pm:**

A _strange cat?_

How dare he call my new pet strange?

Even though he may have deep green eyes that stare at you for what seems an impossibly long time without blinking, it doesn't mean that he is a strange cat.

I don't think.

After I pet Fred (that's what I've decided to call him) and give him a decent welcome, I bring Lydia out and leave the two pets to make friends. But before I can continue on to the garage to make some sort of alchemy mixture, my mobile rings. It's Emelie.

"Hi Emelie." I say, "what's up?"

"Tilly, you _have_ to tell me every single thing that happened after the party when you were upstairs with Ben." she says excitedly. I can just picture her eyes gleaming even more with the suspense of it all.

Oh, help. What am I going to say? My heart is starting to pound. _What am I going to say?_

**12:51 pm:**

Suddenly, I'm seized with a stroke of inspiration.

"Well, actually," I begin, "I really thought he was the one for me, but it turns out..." I pause for a moment, for effect. "He's a school teacher, and last night, every time I casually said something grammatically incorrect, he'd correct it. And–" I press on, "–he told me that he arranges all his books in alphabetical order, _loves_ history, and wears a shirt and tie nearly every single day."

I smother a laugh as I imagine Emelie's look of absolute horror.

"Wow, Tilly." She pauses for a second or two. "You're lucky to get shot of him. He may be good-looking and all, but then he opens his mouth, and the magic's all gone."

"Yep." And then, I can't resist it, but I add, "Which pretty much tells me that he goes for women who don't have an ounce of fun or spontaneity in their boring, intellectual bodies. And that is so not me."

**12:53 pm:**

Then I put the phone down, before I burst out laughing.

**4:32 pm:**

I guess that Emelie has now told Becky what I've told her, and she's probably just as equally horrified. She's probably added more to the story to make it sound even worse, like Ben has had his own backyard butterfly collection since he was five.

**4:33 pm:**

I've got to ring Ben and tell him. I'm still laughing when I hear the doorbell ring, and hurry to answer it. I pull open the door and–

"_Tilly!_ How are you, darling?"

My mother is standing on the doorstep, her mouth stretched into a huge smile, her eyes twinkling with happiness. I haven't seen her in a while, but she still looks the same as I remember, long blonde hair (dyed to hide her roots), bright blue eyes and classy outfit (black and white skirt with matching top).

"_Mum!"_

I rush forward and give her a huge hug. We're both laughing as we hug each other tightly, and she kisses me on the cheek, then all of a sudden she's crying at the same time and saying, "Oh gosh, Tilly, I told myself I wouldn't get overcome with emotion on the way here, but it's so good to see you!"

And it strikes me that even though I've grown up and left home, it seems like it was only yesterday that I was in our old apartment in Bridgeport, arriving home from school and Mum always being there to hug me and ask me how my day had gone.

**5:06 pm:**

A little while later, after cups of chai latte in the living room, we're busily talking about what's been happening in our respective neighbourhoods. Lydia is curled up on the rug and is gazing adoringly at Mum, who pets her every so often. And Fred is sitting upright in an armchair, green eyes wide, seeming to listen eagerly to our tales about everything.

**5:08 pm:**

Technically, I've been doing most of the talking, telling Mum about what it's been like living in Moonlight Falls. I tell her about Emelie, Becky and Ben, about what I've been doing literary-wise, about broomstick riding and my alchemy station, then I finally ask her if there seems to be anything different about me.

Mum looks me up and down, then says, "There's nothing I can see that's different about _you_, Tilly."

"But..." I pause, confused, wondering how on earth to tell her that I've become a vampire. "Well, I've started to enjoy eating plasma fruit a lot more." I stare at her anxiously, awaiting her reaction.

**5:10 pm:**

Mum looks up at the ceiling for what seems forever, looking as if she's contemplating how best to break the news to her only daughter that she's disowning her. Finally, she looks at me and sighs. "Emmy did tell me that this might be the case. But after all, that's your decision, Tilly."

"What? You mean, Emmy Starr?" In a flash, I recall something that Emelie had said to me, the first time we met. "Emmy Starr is Emelie's cousin!"

Mum nods. "The two of them keep in touch occasionally. Emmy came into work a few weeks ago and told me that Emelie had managed to make friends with someone called Tilly, and wondered if this may be my daughter. I told her that yes, I did have a daughter called Tilly, and realised that, given time, you might have been turned into a vampire." A faint smile flickers across her face. "But underneath, you're still the same Tilly I know and love who used to watch cartoons in her pyjamas before school and had a toy duck whose name was Quack."

**5:15 pm:**

My eyes started to prick then. I think it's because of my Magic Jellybean plants. They must be in the process of budding.

**Monday, 19th November**

**10:31 am:**

During these past couple of days, between writing more of 'The Best Of Bonehilda', and hearing from Mum how everyone is back home in Bridgeport (eg. Damian and Cameron), I've been showing Mum around town. I've taken her to the alchemy store, shown her the gypsy caravan from a distance (and she did laugh when I recounted the story of me getting my fortune told) and have even shown her some fancy stunts on my broom at the Zoomsweeper Test Track. She decided to have a little go on the broom but nearly fell off at a height of half a metre and refused to have another go.

**10:37 am:**

We're sitting in the middle of Eerie Park at the fountain, putting our feet up for a bit after taking the pets for a walk. Lydia is tearing round the park, chasing imaginary bouncy balls or something, and Fred is trotting around the fountain, occasionally pouncing on blades of grass.

"So, tell me more about what's going on in Bridgeport." I say to Mum, mentally preparing myself for another heavy, though welcome load of news. Here's what I know so far; Damian and his wife Holly are expecting their first child, Cameron has moved in with a woman called Marina, known as 'Marina and the Diamond', Lea has developed a grey complexion around her muzzle and Mum herself has got the main role in a film entitled, 'The Llama Project'.

Mum stares off into the distance, as though thinking about what to say. For some reason, I feel a bit uneasy. Don't know why.

**10:39 am:**

Finally, she straightens up, looks at me and says, "Honey, I think it's important that I told you something, but we'd better go somewhere where there's nobody around." She starts to stand up and I grab her am.

"Mum! What is it? What's wrong?" I hear panic in my voice and my heart starts to pound in fear. "Has someone died?"

Mum looks down at me, and lets out a surprised laugh. "No! Nobody's died." She sits back down. "Certainly nobody's around here, so I'll tell you now."

**10:40 am:**

_OhGod,ohGod,ohGod,ohGod..._

She takes a breath, puts a hand on my shoulder, then says quietly, "I ran into your dad the other day."

My eyes widen in surprise, and for a moment I can't think what to say.

I guess I should probably tell you why I've never mentioned anything about my dad. The truth is, I hardly know anything about him, just that his name is Matthew Hamming, and that he left my mother before I was born. When I was little, I always assumed that I had simply never had a dad, but as I got older, I gradually found out bits and pieces about him. He had had a short relationship with my mother, then when she got pregnant with me, he decided that he didn't want to get married to her and left her. To be honest, he was just a faint blur in the background of my family history to me, and so I didn't really care one way or another.

But now...that's a completely different story.

**10:43 am:**

Somehow or other, I manage to be able to say, "And what happened?"

A silence follows, then my mum shakes her head. "I honestly didn't recognise him at first. I–I had no idea...he didn't contact me..." Her voice trails off.

"_What. Happened."_ My voice is a hard, flat voice that doesn't sound like mine.

She takes a deep breath, then begins. "It was at one of our premiere parties, only a week or so ago. I was in the corner of the room and getting a glass of nectar, when I heard a voice saying, "Hannah Castor, you haven't changed a bit since the day I met you."

'I don't know how Matthew knew it was me, but all the same, he knew. After you were born, Tilly, I tried again and again to contact him, but nothing. I think he moved away to another neighbourhood. He seemed civil and friendly, asking me all these questions, like how was I finding my job, etc, etc. Eventually, I got the courage to ask him where had he been all these years, and why had he left me." She shakes her head again, in contempt. "He came out with all this guff about _finding himself,_ and _commitment issues_, anyway, then he asked about you."

**10:57 am:**

"He asked about me?" My voice seems uncertain, disbelieving.

Mum nods. "He knew that I had had a child, but that's all. So, anyway, I told him about you, and he said–he said that he'd like to see you."

**11:00 am:**

I seem to have lost the ability to speak for several seconds. Mum comes closer and puts an arm around me. "It's entirely your decision, Tilly darling. You can think about it for a few days, you know."

It seems to be taking all my willpower not to do something stupid like cry. I think that Mum's feeling the same way.

**11:05 am:**

But just as I'm about to suggest to Mum that we continue with our 'Town Tour', a small girl with dark hair in a ponytail comes running up to me and says, "Excuse me, do you have a black and white cat with super green eyes?"

"Yes, that's my cat." I answer, feeling that nothing good is going to come out of this. "What's wrong?"

The little girl pauses before continuing. "Well, I saw you with him, and then he ran off away from here and so I thought I should tell you that he got lost."

**11:08 am:**

_Damnit._

* * *

**4:30 pm:**

Mum and I went round and round calling for Fred. Nothing. I rang Becky, Emelie, Ben and Dwayne and asked if they had seen him at all. Nothing there either, though they all said they'd keep a lookout for him.

Lydia seemed very depressed, and howled as though she was calling for him, too. I tried to quieten her down, but a few cross looks from other Sims due to the mournful noise she was making just made her howl harder. I explained to them our situation, and they thawed considerably. One old lady even wept and said, "Give that poor doggie a bone when you get home, dear. It's not right for a loyal pup to lose their master so young.'

**4:33 pm:**

I didn't tell her that Fred was actually a cat, but I looked especially sad and agreed with her.

**Tuesday, 20th November**

**11:42 am:**

Fred is still lost. Mum and I are still looking. Lydia is still depressed.

**Wednesday, 21st November**

**12:03 pm:**

Mum is examining my newly-acquired skeleton closet. I warned her that she'd better be careful about coming face-to-face with Bonehilda, but she just laughed and said it would do her good to have a new experience.

**12:06 pm:**

Fred is still missing, now presumed dead. RIP, Fred. I'll never forget your short but affectionate friendship with Lydia and I, your tendency to out-stare people in staring contests, or your–

**12:07 pm: **

Phone's ringing. Who could it be?

Without checking the caller ID, I press the 'Answer' button and say, "Hello?"

"Tilly?"

_I know that voice,_ I think, with a feeling of foreboding. _Gosh, if she found out that my mum was visiting from You-Know-Where, she'd have a right royal fit._

"It's Flora Goodfellow here. Just wondering when you were going to pop round to collect your cat from our place. I know you've been looking, so I thought I'd do a good deed and take him in. Isn't that right, puss-puss?" she coos in the background, and I hear an answering purr.

**12:08 pm:**

I find myself agreeing in a near-monotone to come round ASAP and remove Fred. Or rather, rescue would be a better choice of words. I should probably take care not to let out the skeleton-in-the-closet thing to Flora about Mum coming to stay from Bridgeport.

As if in tune with my thoughts, I hear Mum give a loud scream of shock, and quickly look up to see Bonehilda peering round the living room door and grinning at me.

**12:10 pm:**

My life has become a complete and utter madhouse.

* * *

**I second that! Anyway next chapter is going to be a Christmassy one (a bit late I know) and you'll be seeing a bit of Ben in it too... :)**


	5. A Very Tilly Christmas

**Hey everyone! So as promised, here is the Christmas chapter (a little bit late, I know!) Also I don't own the Seasons expansion pack yet, so I've used a bit of imagination for this part. PS. I'm from NZ so I have no idea what it's like having Christmas in winter...but I really want to have a white Christmas one day :)**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

**Thursday 23rd November**

**9:00 am:**

I've gathered all my nerves of steel, and a long loop of courage for the task ahead. Go round to collect Fred, pray like anything that Flora doesn't start on about _good deeds_ and whatnot, and get out of there as quickly as possible. Mum is coming with me, even though I've tried desperately to talk her out of it by telling her what Flora thinks of Bridgeport. No such luck.

**9:15 am:**

We've left Bonehilda to her own devices, sweeping and cleaning, and Mum and I are now standing on the doorstep of the Goodfellow household waiting for someone to answer the door. Hopefully, Pip's at home, so this whole charade will be over and done with as quickly as possible.

**9:16 am:**

"_Helloo!" _A beaming Flora Goodfellow opens the door, her blue wings merrily flapping to and fro. I glance at Mum, and am shocked to find her beaming back at Flora. "I expect you've come for your cat! Come on in." She ushers us into the living room, which is full of bookshelves, chintzy-covered armchairs, and odd-looking objects. And there, curled up on a chair is Fred, his tail lazily flicking to and fro, looking happy and content.

**9:18 am:**

"He turned up at the house a few days ago, looking rather lost." Flora explains, gesturing at us to sit down in the chintz armchairs, which we do. "So we kept him here, thinking he was a stray, but _then_ we heard that you were looking for him!" She looks at us, her eyes bright. "But by the way, we didn't know what to call him, so we decided to temporarily name him Whiskers." She casts an adoring look at Fred, who purrs back at her.

**9:19 am:**

_Whiskers?_

It makes me feel so dismal to see how easily Fred's affections are bought.

**9:20 am:**

"But anyway, I haven't introduced myself to you yet!" Flora continues, this time speaking to my mother. "I'm Flora Goodfellow."

Mum smiles at her. "Lovely to meet you, Flora. I'm Hannah Castor, Tilly's mother, from Bridgeport."

_Oh, God no. Now we've blown it._ I think desperately. _Just wait for it..._

But to my utter surprise, Flora twinkles back. 'Bridgeport? How lovely. I must say, I was _so_ surprised when I heard that Tilly came from Bridgeport!"

_Yeah, you were,_ I think. _So, very surprised._

**9:45 am:**

To my utter amazement, Mum and Flora managed to hit it off very well. _Very_ well. Flora's wings had nearly been flapped off in the excitement of hearing who Mum works with, which films are making the 'Top Hots' list at the moment, and which celebrities inhabit Bridgeport.

Just as we were about to leave, Mum carrying Fred out to the car, Flora turned to me, looking rather ashamed.

"Look, Tilly, I want to say that I'm very sorry about how I treated you when you first came here. I shouldn't have implied that Bridgeport was the worst place on earth to live, and now that I've met your mother, I can see now how very wrong I was to have behaved that way." She continued on, hanging her head. "Even though Bridgeport may not have been my place of ideal living, I know that the Sims who who come from there are just like anyone else. And now that I know how important it is to–"

"Flora," I interrupt, hiding a smile. "I accept your apology, and thank you. But I'm afraid that if you don't shut up right now, I'm going to have to kill you."

**11:16 am:**

How very weird.

I certainly wasn't expecting Flora to laugh lightly at that last statement, least of all suggest that she would like me to be her friend.

I've rang everyone else and told them that I've found Fred. They were ecstatic. Well, as ecstatic as you can be about finding a lost cat. But I've told nobody but Becky where he turned up, and she just about couldn't believe it.

**11:18 am:**

Then again, neither could I.

**Friday, 24th November**

**2:25 pm:**

Today is Mum's last day here. She's sad to go, but at the same time, I can tell that she's relieved to be going back to Bridgeport. She doesn't show it, though.

"I'm going to miss you very, very much, darling." she says, hugging me tightly. "Any word on what I'm going to say to your dad?"

I hesitate. Random thoughts rush through my mind. I suddenly remember a memory of being in primary school and having to draw our family tree. I had simply drawn my mum and I (this was before we got Lea), and I remember the teacher asking, "Why don't you draw Daddy, too?"

I said, "Because I don't have a daddy. I only live with Mummy and she does everything for me."

The teacher's eyebrows went up, but she didn't say anything.

**2:30 pm:**

"Yes." The word bursts out of my mouth, surprising even me. It's as if someone else is speaking for me. "Tell him that if he wants to come back into our lives without ruining them for a second time, he has to _prove_ that he's actually worthy of being a great dad and husband. Otherwise, I'm refusing to be a part of his life, just like he refused to be a part of mine."

My mother nods. "That seems about right." She gives a faint smile, then looks at me again. "I'm proud of you, Tilly Tierney."

"You don't mind that I've changed my name?" I ask, anxiously.

Mum smiles at me, and shrugs. "Well, I can tell you that I did at first, but then again, it's your decision. You're an adult, you'll make your own mistakes and decisions and learn from them. But no matter what, I'll still love you, whoever you choose to be."

**2:33 pm:**

I really did cry then. And I knew that it wasn't my Magic Jellybean plants.

**3:07 pm:**

I leaned against the door and waved until my mother's car was out of sight. I feel so mentally drained right now. Maybe next year when I go to visit Mum in Bridgeport, I'll have to bring some friends along. Emelie and Becky and Ben...maybe.

**Friday, 30th November**

**3:32 pm:**

I've now sent _'The Best Of Bonehilda_' away in the mail with feverent wishes and prayers, hoping that it has a chance in fifty of making the top of the Bestsellers list. I invited Dwayne and Emelie round to read it, along with a glass of plasma nectar (and coffee for Dwayne). It went rather well, aside from Emelie pointing out that I had made Bonehilda sound like nothing else but a cleaning machine.

"But she does!" I protested feebly. "I mean, that's what a skeleton in the closet is for, right?"

Dwayne pulled back the curtain and peered out onto the front lawn, where we could all clearly see Bonehilda teaching Lydia how to sit.

**4:52 pm:**

_Oh well, as they say, things can only get better, _I think, hurrying down the hall to answer the door.

I pull the door open and am surprised to see Ben standing on my doorstep with an armful of clothes and a big suitcase. Fred is sitting a short distance away, his big green eyes round with interest.

"Ben! What are you doing here?" I exclaim, quickly grabbing the suitcase from him before it drops onto the porch and clothes spill everywhere.

Ben fidgets. "Well, erm, Megan got so mad with me when I...wouldn't do what she wanted me to, if you get what I mean..."

All I can do is stare at him.

"And she, well, threw me out of her house, and I haven't got anywhere else to go, so...can I come and stay with you for a bit?"

**4:53 pm:**

_Spoke too soon..._

**Saturday, 15th December**

**9:10 am:**

It's starting to snow outside. Big white flakes of snow are tumbling down from the sky, which can only mean one thing. Christmas is coming.

I have no idea why everyone here calls it 'Snowflake Day'. I mean, Christmas to me is Christmas. Fred has taken to curling up in front of the fire and staring into the flames, and Lydia has just come inside from rolling round in the snow looking like a big white snowball.

**9:14 am:**

Ben, on the other hand, has managed to find himself a small apartment on the outskirts of town, however he says that it won't be available until after Christmas. So, since it is the season of goodwill, I've allowed him to stay with me until then.

"Ben?"

"Yeah?" He looks up at me from the newspaper he's reading, and brushes his dark hair away from his face.

"What exactly did Megan do when she threw you out?" I ask, suddenly unsure about how he's going to react. For the last couple of weeks, I haven't asked him about it, as I got the feeling that he didn't want to talk about it, which was OK. The only thing I got out of him was that Megan got fed up with him saying no to things he didn't want to do (you get the picture), and eventually yelled at him that she deserved way better, and broke up with him.

**9:16 am:**

Ben takes a deep breath. "You haven't told anyone yet that I'm gay, have you?"

"What? of course not!" I say, feeling a little bit frustrated. I mean, he swore me to secrecy and everything.

He begins. "I won't say what she tried to get me to do, but then she started storming round the house and saying things like, "I should have ended it with you ages ago, had I known it would come to this." I just sort of stood there and didn't know what to say. But I deserved it. It's all my fault." He looks miserable.

"Ben! Don't you dare say things like that! Megan was way out of line, you know that!" I sit on the arm of his chair and awkwardly pat him on the shoulder.

"But I led her on! Instead of saying no and explaining why I couldn't go out with her, I led her on." His head hangs forward. "Then after she finished yelling at me, Megan just grabbed all my stuff and threw it out on the lawn. That was her way of saying goodbye."

**9:20 am:**

I don't know what to say to that, except for, "Look, you got out of it, and you're here now, so stop worrying."

Ben reaches up and gives my hand a squeeze. "Thanks, Tilly."

"Anytime." I say, returning to my task of attempting to hang up fairy lights around the room.

**10:13 am:**

Oh, gosh. This is awful. Poor Ben. He's really down about this. And it's Christmas! Nobody, least of all Ben, should be unhappy at Christmas. There must be something I can do to cheer him up and stop worrying about Megan...

Something that ensures we all have a great time...

Suddenly, I'm seized with a brainwave. I have the best idea ever.

I quickly pull out my phone and call Emelie. Barely three rings and she's picked up.

"Hey girl!" I can hear laughter and strange noises as if someone's moving furniture around. "Merry vamprific Christmas!"

"Merry vamprific Christmas to you too, Emelie." I reply. "Listen, I normally wouldn't ask, but I need a favour, which involves you, specifically."

"Me too!" Emelie sounds excited. "I've got something to show you. It's the most wonderful–" She pauses, then sighs. "Yeah, what?"

**10:20 am:**

Once I've told Emelie my plan, she sounds pretty excited. Hopefully, this year's annual Van Gould Christmas party, courtesy of Tilly Tierney and Emelie Van Gould, will go down without a hitch. And a great Christmas party with a heap of our friends is sure to make Ben feel better.

**11:06 am:**

I've finished decorating the house, and I have to say it looks great. With Ben's assistance (mainly to tell me where things go, what looks good and to stop Lydia or Fred from playing with the decorations) it's complete. Stockings by the fireplace, fairy lights strung up outside, a wreath hung on the door, it looks a picture. There's just one problem.

**11:08 am:**

"Haven't you got a Christmas tree?" Ben asks, tugging a shiny bauble away from Fred's advancing paws.

I shake my head. "I tried to get one off the Internet, but it's not working. My order shows up, but it doesn't say that it's been bought. There must be a problem with the website." I shake my head. "It doesn't look right without a tree, Ben! What am I going to do?"

"I have an idea." He vanishes into the hallway, and returns, lugging my Magic Jellybean plants with him. They've grown quite a bit now...actually, they're almost as tall as I am. Maybe the 'Magic' part isn't just referring to the actual jellybeans.

**11:10 am:**

A couple of minutes and a length of red ribbon later, I now have my very own Magic Jellybean Christmas tree. Well, trees, really. Ben has put the two plants side by side against the window and tied some red ribbon around them with a bow.

"There!" Ben stands back to admire his handiwork. "We can put our presents under the bow when the time's right. And the Magic Jellybeans are their own decoration, really."

I glance at my 'Christmas tree' and smile. "Yes, they are, rather."

**Monday 17th December**

**3:25 pm:**

Ben's just come downstairs wearing a very bright red and green jumper with a picture of a dog on it. I asked him whether his mother knitted it for him, and he replied in the affirmative.

Sadly, he was telling the truth.

**3:27 pm:**

As well as that, Ben has roped me into going Christmas carolling with him, Dwayne and Flora. Hopefully everything goes smoothly and that Flora has remembered that she and I are supposed to be friends.

I guess she's not too bad really, apart from her annoying habit of twittering at anything and everything.

**10:10 pm:**

Just got back from carolling (or rather, Christmas karaoke-ing) with the others. We decided to go and hang out outside the Toadstool, where there was a small crowd milling round outside. They didn't pay much attention to us at first, shouting, "Come back at Christmas!", but they sure did when Dwayne started mournfully howling away to 'Silent Night'. Flora then followed it up by singing 'Hark The Herald Angels Sing', while Ben and I went round the crowd and reminded everyone that Christmas is the season of giving, spreading the love round to families and friends, and celebrating the birth of baby Jesus. In the end, everyone sang along to 'Away In A Manger', which I must admit made a touching picture with our faces lifted to the heavens and ignoring the scenes of a werewolf fight breaking out behind us.

**10:15 pm:**

Plus, the crowd members also forked out a total of twenty Simoleons in conscience money, which we split between us four. Flora said that she was going to buy some new fairy lights, which I think is quite ironic as her whole house is fully decked out in them.

Seems legit.

**Thursday 20th December**

**5:07 pm:**

Today is a day that will go down in history. Not only is it the day of Emelie's Christmas party, but...'_The Best Of Bonehilda_' has been made a best-seller, in literature advertisements! When I saw the cheque in the mail, I couldn't believe it. Now I'll be able to put money towards going somewhere over the Christmas holiday!

**5:09 pm:**

That reminds me–tonight, Emelie is going to show me something that she bought a week or so ago. I have no idea what it is. I hope it's not a pet vampire bat, or anything.

**5:10 pm:**

Ben is pacing round the kitchen looking decidedly nervous about something. I've asked him what it is, but he doesn't tell me. Maybe it's the fact that he's unsure about what people will think about his latest Christmas jumper. It's bright red and has got a picture of a Christmas pudding on it, as well as tinsel draped around the shoulders as an 'artistic touch'.

**5:12 pm:**

Must stop now. I don't want to be late for Emelie's party. Oh gosh, Dante will be there...

One can only hope that everything goes smoothly. Then again, it's a Christmas party.

I mean, what could happen?

* * *

**So there you go...what do you think Emelie's Christmas present will be? Any ideas? Hope you liked reading this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it (sounds cliché, I know). So next time you'll hear from me, it'll be the Van Gould Christmas party with a whole lot of craziness!**


	6. Emelie's Christmas Party

**Hi there! So, here we have the Van Gould Christmas Party, and of course nothing really goes to plan where Tilly's concerned...**

**Emelie's Christmas Party:**

**6:30 pm:**

I park the car out the front of Emelie's house and Ben and I begin walking up the path. The light from the half-moon is shining down onto us, casting silver shadows over everything. A water fountain trickles away to the left, and from inside the house, I can hear the muffled sounds of music and laughing.

**6:33 pm:**

"Hopefully there will be some drinks inside. I am in desperate need of nectar before I see Dante again." I say to Ben as we stand on the doorstep. I automatically tug at my dress (red with a light green bow round the middle) just in case Dante is looking out the window, or something.

Ben glances at me. "Are you keen on him, then?" A smile makes its way across his face. "I would be too, if I were you."

I open my mouth to make an indignant reply, but then something pulls me up short. A rustling sound catches my attention, from a large green bush closest to us. _Probably just the wind,_ I think, but then it dawns on me. There is no wind.

"Ben," I ask, as calmly as I can (which isn't easy when one's voice is shaking with slight terror) "Can I just erm, have your help with something? There's a rustling, erm, in the bush, and–"

Ben turns around to look from me to the bush. "Tilly, it's probably just a bird or something."

"But–" My eyes travel downwards, and I suddenly notice with a surge of terror that the bush has grown four, large, black paws. Then the _thing_, or whatever it is rustles again, louder. "Ben, can you just–"

**6:40 pm:**

"WOOF, WOOF!"

The large black animal emerges from the bush and careers towards Ben and I. I have no idea what it is, but I'm not sticking round to find out.

"Run, Ben!" I shout. "Aargh! A woolly bully!"

"Oh, _do _stop it!" comes Emelie's voice from the side of the house. I look up and almost collapse with relief when I see her heading towards us, dressed in a blue cocktail dress. "Jasper! _Jasper! _Here! Now!"

I stare in amazement as the big, black furry dog gambols playfully up to her. She lovingly fusses over it, then looks at both of us and grins. "Tilly, Ben, meet Jasper. He's what I've been wanting to show you. Bought him as an early Christmas present to myself." She continues petting Jasper, who is now staring at us looking smug.

"Well at least you got a tiny one so you could carry it round in your handbag!" I gasp, pointing at the huge shaggy dog. "Put a saddle on that thing and you could _ride_ it!"

Emelie rolls her eyes. "Come on in, guys. She leads Jasper inside by the collar, and Ben and I follow after her.

**7:00 pm:**

I get myself a plate of sushi and headed over where Becky, Emelie's brother Tristan and a guy who I'd never seen before were sitting. I thought Ben might follow but he appeared to be in deep conversation with a woman with long, brown hair who I'm pretty sure is someone called Annie Nix.

After I had been introduced to the guy (Chauncey Grimm, who said he was possibly related to the Grimm brothers but didn't know for sure), we talked and talked about all sorts of things for ages. Brooding vampires, alchemy, and the correct way to wash dogs without joining them for a wash.

**7:37 pm:**

In fact, I don't even know that _he's_ there until he's standing right beside me.

"How's it going, everyone?"

I raise my head to look at Dante. He looks the same as ever, dark black hair, dressed in a suit and tie, but..._Oh my God, he's so good–looking,_ I think, as I smile at him like an idiot because I can't think of anything to say. _What should I say to him?_

**7:38 pm:**

Luckily, Tristan comes to my rescue. "Dante, my man! Haven't seen you for ages!" He gets up to shake Dante's hand and brings over a round of plasma nectar for all of us. "Are you having a fangtasic Snowflake Day holiday, mate?" He laughs at his own pun. "Hopefully there's enough plasma nectar here for us all."

Tristan continues to babble on for about ten more minutes while the rest of us tune out. I, however, am mentally creating a game plan for things I should say to Dante. The topics of weather, the Llamas football team and vegetable-growing are omitted. Laughing, flipping hair and smiling are included on the list, under 'Extras'. Maybe I'll tell him the Christmas–carol story. He might find it funny...

**7:53 pm:**

"Tristan!" I snap out of my trance to the sound of Emelie's voice. "I'm going to shove a sock in your mouth if you don't stop talking!" She rolls her eyes at him. "Now make yourself useful and please get some more plasma nectar out. And see if you can make Daddy stop brooding in the kitchen. It's driving me insane every time I look at him."

Tristan grins good-naturedly at her. "Whatever, sis."

**7:54 pm:**

As Tristan gets up and makes his way to the kitchen, and I'm just about to hit Dante with the number one topic on my list (Christmas carol fiasco), when a loud tapping on a glass gets everyone's attention. I peer across the room to see who it is, and see that it's Ben. You could see that Christmas pudding jumper from a mile away. _What is he doing?_ I think, in puzzlement. Silence falls over the crowd.

Ben clears his throat and begins to speak. "So, everyone, I know that what I'm about to say doesn't have anything to do with this amazing party at hand–" (he waves a hand towards Emelie, who is glowing with happiness) – "but I think you should know something. And–" He pauses for a moment, as if trying to figure out how to best put it, "it's about me."

**7:55 pm:**

With a shocked jolt, I realise where this is going.

I am absolutely, one hundred percent sure, that Ben is about to open the door of the closet and step out for good.

And there's nothing I can do except sit here, and watch the scene unfold.

"I guess that what I'm really trying to say, is that, I've realised this for quite some time." Ben's eyes land on mine, and I stare back at him helplessly. "I didn't know how people would react, and I hope that you all find it in yourselves to treat me the same as ever. It's not an easy thing to say, but what I'm really trying to say is that–"

I'm barely breathing now.

"I'm gay."

**7:56 pm:**

_Oh my God._

A stunned silence falls over the crowd for a couple of seconds, then–

The most amazing thing happens.

All the guests start clapping.

Ben's face breaks into a smile as the applause continues. I shakily stand up, somehow finding the strength to make my legs still work, hurry over to Ben and throw my arms around him. The next thing I know, Ben is in the midst of a group hug, and Tristan shouts, loudly, "Let's all have a celebratory glass of nectar for the jolly good fellow!"

**8:10 pm:**

Amidst the chatter of the other guests (and the loud music playing from the stereo) Becky and Emelie somehow manage to find me dancing with Dante and haul me away for a moment.

"Why on earth didn't you tell us that Ben batted for the other team in the first place?" Emelie says increduously, her eyes wide.

"And why did you make out that he was a geeky nerd who collected butterflies and wore a shirt and tie every day?" Becky asks, her expression disbelieving.

I laugh, and reply, "Because Ben made me promise not to tell. So I didn't. And you were the ones who tried to set me up with him, so of course I couldn't tell you the truth!"

"No wonder." Emelie murmurs, looking crestfallen.

**8:13 pm:**

Becky and Emelie then hurry off to dance as the song, 'Saturday Night' comes on, and I'm just about to continue dancing with Dante, when he turns to me and says, "Want to go and sit outside for a bit?"

_Okay, don't panic. He wants you to sit outside with him. And look at the stars. That's all. What's the worst that could happen?_

**8:14 pm:**

I agree to this (obviously) and we walk outside together. It's a beautiful starry night, and there's a cool breeze blowing the tops of the trees about. Dante seats himself down on a wooden garden bench, next to a flowering shrub, and pats the space beside him. I carefully sit beside him, hoping to God that my dress doesn't ride up. Or down.

"It's a nice night for a party." Dante comments, looking up at the stars. "Do you know what they're called?"

Oh no. He's talking about the stars. My mind and heart start racing. Why on earth didn't I pay more attention in Astronomy class in high school? Drat.

"Erm..." I flounder for words. "Well, that one there–" (I randomly point at a group of stars clustered together) – "is The Heavenly Cluster, or something. And over there–" (I gesture to one that sort of look like a saucepan) "–is called, um, The Saucepan."

Dante laughs. "Tilly, that's the Big Dipper. Close, though."

My face flushes with embarrassment. "Oh, right."

**8:20 pm:**

Dante turns to look at me again and smiles. "You're mad, Tilly. But I like you just as you are." He moves ever-so-slightly nearer to me, and all I can think of is how close to each other we are. I'm suddenly having trouble breathing.

"Um, thanks, Dante." _Thanks? _"I like you too, you know. Very much..." I'm silently hyperventilating as Dante leans in, closer, and my heart starts racing even faster. It's like he's a magnet, drawing me to him...our lips are inches from each other...

**8:22 pm:**

"There you are, guys! I've been wondering where you were!"

The blissful, romantic moment suddenly crumbles as the sound of Ben's voice jerks both of us back to reality. Dante pulls away from me, looking slightly crushed, and moves to stand up. I somehow manage to stagger to my feet, and Dante puts out a hand to steady me. Ben comes into view, his expression jovial.

"I've been looking all over for you–" he begins, then stops as he notices us. "Sorry, were you, erm, busy?"

Using all my willpower, I resist the urge to throttle him to within an inch of his life with the bow tied round my dress. Instead, I can only stand there and nod mutely as Dante says to me quietly, "Bye, Tilly. Hope to see you round soon," then walks back inside.

**8:24 pm:**

I can practically feel my heart fracture in two as Ben walks nearer to me and says, looking ashamed, "Were you two just about to...?"

"Yes!" I snap, feeling miserable. "And then you ruined it! Thanks a lot!."

He sighs. "I'm sorry, Tilly. Really." He gazes back at the door into Emelie's house."Think Dante would let me comfort him?"

"Ben!"

"What? I only meant after I had comforted you first, of course!" Ben adds quickly.

**8:27 pm:**

Which, even in this very moment of misery and despair, did make me laugh.

**Monday, 24th December**

**9:24 pm:**

Christmas Eve. Finally. Ben and I are sitting in front of the crackling orange fire in the living room, with a glass each of Sunset Valley's Spritish Creme. Fred is dozing in an armchair, his paws clutching a sprig of fake holly, and Lydia is chewing on her toy bone. All this should be a peaceful atmosphere, aside from the faint sounds of laughter, shrieking and Christmas music from next door.

**9:26 pm:**

Yes, the annual Snowflake Eve Fairy Party happens to be taking place, right next door to us. Flora and Pip are bound to be there, of course, showing off with displays of magic and whatnot. Flora rang me a couple of hours ago to tell me that she was going dressed as a giant Christmas light.

**9:30 pm:**

Ben stands up, and runs a hand through his hair. "I'm going to hit the sack now, Tilly, so I can get up in the morning to get the turkey ready."

"Oh, all right. Yeah, me too." I stand up and wave at him as I head out the door. "See you at Christmas!"

**10:10 pm:**

I thought it would be easy to sleep because I'm so tired, but it turns out it's not. The noise of the fairy party, though muffled, is keeping me awake. I'm pretty sure that I even hear one fairy shriek, "Have you _heard_ about the price of fairy dust at the alchemy store? Thank heavens we can manufacture our own!"

**10:14 pm:**

In the end, I got so mad that I opened my window and yelled, "SHUT UP! Nobody wants to hear you twittering on about bloody fairy dust, for goodness' sake!"

That shut them up pretty quickly.

**Christmas Day**

**10:23 pm:**

Today has been a great Christmas. Ben and I have had our own little Christmas party, along with the pets, and even Bonehilda. I've rang Mum, Damian and Holly, and Cameron in Bridgeport to wish them a Happy Christmas, and Ben has rang his family in Lucky Palms. We even let Bonehilda have her own glass of Spritish Creme. I have no idea how on earth she digested it, but somehow she ended up sitting in the armchair, swirling the glass about and grinning manically at us.

**10:27 pm:**

For Christmas, I gave Ben a Vial of Bliss, which I had made at my alchemy station. Not that I thought he needed to be happier, I explained to him, but if he was ever feeling low, well, it was just a pick-me-up he could use. He gave me a medium-sized painting of a horse, dog and a cat on top of a hill, and said that it was based on a famous sculpture which is situated in the art museum of Bridgeport. And we've all had stuffed turkey and key lime pie for midday dinner, plus Dwayne, Emelie, and all our other friends have all rang to say Merry Christmas. Or rather, Merry Snowflake Day.

**10:31 pm:**

But the most thrilling event was when Flora quickly flitted in with Pip this afternoon to say a quick hello, and breathless with excitement, informed Ben and I that she, Dante, Ben and I are all going to go to Egypt for a holiday, in honour of the New Year.

"And who is going to pay for all our air fares and expenses?" I demanded, thinking of the amount of cash that was sure to vanish overnight due to this.

Flora explained that one of her good fairy friends belonged to the SimCity travel agency, and she was _sure_ that he would be able to get us top flight deals, and we mustn't worry _at all,_ because we'd be sleeping in tents at the base camp anyway, so the cost would be minimal.

The last time I slept in a tent was when I was in primary school, over at a friend's house. And we'd pretended that we were camping in the jungle with lions and tigers and wild animals all round.

**10:37 pm:**

_I'm going to Egypt!_

And this time, instead of seeing it in the ad spaces in the newspaper advertising travel, I'm going to actually be there! With Ben and Flora and Dante!

Dante.

Hmm.

We haven't talked much since the Van Gould Christmas party, though he did ring us today to wish us goodwill and happiness, etc. But still..._I'm going on holiday with him! Oh my God!_

**10:38 pm:**

I guess I'll just worry about our relationship drama when we get there.

Which reminds me, I wonder how many outfits I should take with me? Should I take one for traveling on the plane, then a new one for each day? Or should I attempt to be economical (I like that word, it makes me sound intelligent) and only take a few to last the whole trip, so I can free up room in my suitcase for my fashionable yet comfortable tomb-exploring shoe collection?

**10:39 pm:**

Oh, I don't know. I'll think about it when I actually start packing, and get Ben to help. And I'll start thinking about my New Year's resolutions...and actually try to make them last until after January 2nd.

**10:40 pm:**

"Hey, Tilly?"

"Yes, Ben?" I look up from where I'm sitting in the living room to the sound of Ben's voice. He's holding a purring Fred, who is blinking his green eyes lazily at me.

"I just want to say that this is one of the best Christmases I think I've ever had." he admits, carefully setting Fred down. "If I hadn't met you, I'm not sure where I'd be, particularly after Megan ditched me." He laughs. "So, just...thanks."

I smile back at him. "You call it Christmas, too." I note.

He nods. "You could say I've picked the name up. Think I'll call it that forevermore." Then, he smiles at me. "Happy Christmas, Tilly."

I get up to return the hug that he gives me.

"Happy Christmas, Ben."

**Sorry that part was quite short, but I promise to make it bigger next time! Also I've got some surprises lined up for next time, but until then, I'll keep you guessing, hehe :P **

**PS. As you may (or may not) have noticed, I've updated the image for the cover! Do you like it?**


	7. Tombs And Tribulations Part I

**Hello again everyone! This is part one of two of Tilly's holiday with Ben, Flora and Dante in Al Simhara, so be prepared for adventure! Also don't forget to check out the prompt from Chapter Three written by Oneofthosepeopleonthestreet, as it's really good. Like, really, really good.**

**And now, on with the story... **

**New Year's Day**

**My New Year's Resolutions:**

* I will not continue to stay out after midnight on the full moon 'just for the supernatural status of it'.

* I will quit obsessing over Dante, and will not act out imaginary conversations in my head between us whenever I see him from a distance.

* Whenever possible, I will attempt to get out and about more so that I can gather inspiration from everyday events in order to help me with my writing career.

* I will no longer continue with Emelie's and my 'Magic Jellybean' game of slipping the jellybeans into unsuspecting Sim's drinks at parties just to see what happens.

Especially not five of them at once.

* And finally, I will try to like Flora Goodfellow again, and will refrain from complaining about her irritating twittering and goody-goody habits.

**Friday, 18th January**

**3:13 am:**

Bloody hell. Who knew that getting out of an extremely comfortable bed at 3am would result in me wishing that I didn't have to go on holiday? The only thing that made me practically sleepwalk down the stairs to the kitchen was the thought of the pyramids, and thoughts of finding tombs and treasures.

**3:50 am:**

When Flora and Dante turned up in a taxi to collect Ben and I, I thought I was about to collapse from the stress of getting my suitcase to shut. Of course I had attempted to be economical and choose only the most sensible tomb-raiding gear (I mean, tomb-exploring gear) to take, but what about if we go out to an Egyptian nightclub or something? Surely allowances must be made for that? Ben was having the same problem. He was all for taking two suitcases but Flora put her foot down firmly and stated indignantly that 'he would get left behind if he even thought about doing such a thing'. Anyway, after sitting on my suitcase and managing to shut it, Ben and I lugged our cases out the front door and piled everything into the taxi. On the other hand, I did have Dante to help me carry mine. Tee hee hee.

**5:15 am:**

Have boarded the plane, and have somehow managed to end up sitting next to Flora. How on earth did that happen? Why isn't Dante sitting next to me? Still, Flora did say that the two of them will probably end up talking about boring 'guy things' for the whole flight, so I guess that that is a blessing. In total disguise.

**5:20 am:**

We're off! On our way to Egypt, land of mummies, pyramids and sand. This experience is bound to open my eyes to the world, which is good as I need some new material for a book.

Almost forgot to say, Pip is going to be looking after Lydia and Fred for me, which is a relief. Hopefully I don't arrive back home and see that both my beloved pets have grown wings. Emelie has gone to stay with her cousin Emmy for the New Year, (and says that if she sees my mum or Lea, she'll say hi.) Becky and her husband Dennis flew to Sunset Valley on New Year's Eve. She told me that they have a summer Snowflake Day over there, which is something they've both always wanted to experience. And Dwayne and Erica are packing themselves and their kids away to Appaloosa Plains, to 'get a taste of the country'.

**5:24 am:**

Personally, I think it was, 'to get a taste of the country animals', but I didn't like to say anything.

**Saturday 19th January**

**8:00 am:**

Got here yesterday around one pm. We were all so tired that we just got into our tents and slept for ages. It's so hot here. Green floppy palm trees, bushes and sand everywhere. Thank goodness I bought along a lot of white floaty T-shirts.

Anyway, this morning we're all going to the local market to have a look round and meet some locals. I plan to buy some Egyptian recipe books, and Flora says that she wants to look at the relic store. Meanwhile, Dante says that he'd like to try charming a snake. I hope he's joking.

**8:15 am:**

The market is much smaller than I would have thought, but it's still pretty cool. There's a water fountain in the centre, sandy brick-coloured shops all around, and a view of the Sphinx when you're standing in the right spot. After a quick confab, us four all decide to go to the bookshop, which isn't like any other bookshop I've ever been to before. Wooden bookcases grace nearly every wall, pictures of ancient Egyptians are hung round the room, and small golden and silver relics are placed on the cash register desk. Standing behind the desk is the bookshop owner, who is a tall, tan woman with long black hair by the name of Layla Lufti.

"You have all come here from Moonlight Falls, you say?" she says, after we've introduced ourselves. "I see a lot of Sims come here for holidays from other neighbourhoods, but not many from Moonlight Falls. Do you have many plans so far?"

**8:17 am:**

"Well, we're planning to explore the pyramids and go and visit the Sphinx," Flora adds, looking up from the book she's flicking through ('Tomb Raiding For Dummies'), "and just explore everywhere, really."

Layla smiles. "How lovely. One of my good friends went exploring in the Great Pyramid last week or so. However, he tragically lost one of his beloved possessions presumably in a stone chest, and hasn't dared to go and look for it since." She shakes her head sadly. "Poor Abdul. He'd need at least a team of explorers to look for this item, after all, he's terrified of going into the pyramids alone lest he runs into a mummy."

**8:19 am:**

An idea begins to form in my head. Looking round at Flora, I can see she's thinking the same thing.

"Hang on." I say, slowly. "A team of explorers? That would be equivalent to the four of us! So we could help your friend out, couldn't we?"

"In terms of extra Visa points and Ancient coins, that's a very good idea!" Flora gasps, her eyes bright with anticipation, glancing at Ben and Dante for approval.

The two of them look at us like we're crazy.

"So, are we just going to rock up to the Great Pyramid and try and find this thing?" Dante says, raising an skeptical eyebrow. "As in, right now?"

"Oh, not straight away, surely!" Flora shakes her head. "We need a couple of days to rest, don't we, with jetlag and everything." She beams at Layla. "But don't worry. We'll all soon be ready to help."

"That's very kind of you four to volunteer." smiles Layla. "I'll get in touch with Abdul and tell him."

**8:42 am:**

Needless to say, Ben and Dante didn't look too eager.

So, like it or not, it seems like we've landed in the middle of an adventure.

But it can't be so bad. We'll be exploring the pyramids, and surely dead Egyptian mummies can't really come alive and run round on two legs like everyone else, right?

**8:43 am:**

Right?

**4:00 pm:**

We finished looking round the markets, then decided to go and see the temple of Queen Hatshepsut. It had a lot of stone stairs leading up to the front of the building, and I probably would have keeled over from exhaustion had it not been for Dante behind me (as I would have fallen on top of him otherwise). When we got to the top and into the tomb, we had a walk round the sandy brick tomb to see if we could find anything exciting in terms of relics or treasure. Nothing.

"Did you bring your magnifying glass?" Dante muttered to me as we walk down the hallway. "Because I think there might be a few fossilized grains of precious golden sand that we _might_ just have missed back there."

I laughed and said, "We'll look for relics and coins tomorrow. Wonder what we'll find?"

Dante looked thoughtful and said, "That guy must have lost a pretty valuable item and all. What do you think it'll be?"

**4:03 pm:**

I was about to reply with a suggestion like a camera, or a fashionable tomb-exploring hat, but was interrupted by Ben randomly pointing at one of the statues and saying, "I wonder how much he'd weigh in real life if he wasn't made of gold."

**Monday, 21st January**

**9:19 am:**

After a good sleep, shower and bowl of cereal by the campfire, Flora, Dante, Ben and I are ready to report in to this Abdul guy for Operation Rescue Remedy. Hopefully this thing won't take us days to find, that is, if we find it at all.

The sun's risen properly now, casting a bright light over everything, making the sand look like it's made of fine gold grains. We're all dressed in white shirts and are wearing what I call 'tourist shorts', which are all different colours. Ben, however, is wearing a bright yellow shirt with a picture of the Sphinx on it. At times like this, I'm glad I'm wearing flat shoes.

"I can't wait to go inside the pyramids and explore all round!" chirps Flora as we walk up the sandy slope to Abdul's house, waving her arms (and wings) round in excitement. "Where's everyone's sense of adventure?"

"Mine's still asleep in the tent at the base camp." says Ben, causing three out of four of us to laugh.

**9:21 am:**

Barely three seconds after Flora rings the front doorbell of the house, the door is opened by a guy who I automatically know is Abdul Kamel. He's quite muscular with short dark hair and smiling grey eyes, and he's wearing what I think is a kaftan. He's very good-looking, I guess, in an exotic sort of way.

"You must all four be the explorers who are going to help me!" he says, his grey eyes smiling at us.

"Yeah, that's right." I say. "I'm Tilly, this is Flora, Dante, and Ben." (I notice that Ben is staring at Abdul and not saying anything, so I tread on his foot).

"Ow!" Ben then seems to come to his senses and mutters, "Hi. I'm Ben."

Abdul looks round at us and says, "It's very good of you all to come. Many Sims wouldn't be brave enough to venture into a large tomb, but this is surely a blessing from Horus."

Us four smile and nod, though I'm pretty sure that I'm the only one who knows who Horus is. Everyone else is looking quizzical.

"So what exactly are we looking for?" Dante wonders.

Abdul waves a hand and says, "Now, my explorers, I will tell you..."

**10:30 am:**

"Does anyone know who Horus is?" Ben wonders, as we trudge nearer to the Great Pyramid. I have to say it's enormous up close. _Bet that even King Timbucktoo didn't anticipate how many tons of brick and sand it would take to build,_ I think, as we approach the entrance.

"In Ancient Egypt, he was the god of the sun, war and protection." I answer, as Flora and Dante attempt to open the enormous pyramid door by banging on it. "He was a man with a falcon head. We'll probably find out something about him in here."

Suddenly, the ground begins to shake, as the pyramid door slides open, and dust billows out everywhere.

We've gained entry!

**10:34 am:**

"Remember, everyone, he said we had to look for a room of yellow brick and brown flooring which had two stone statues, three sarcophagi, one of which was gold, and a stone chest in the middle of the room." Flora rattles off as we walk into the tomb. The air smells old and musty, and the sounds of our footsteps and voices echo slightly off the walls. I shudder as we pass a skeleton lying on the floor, parts of its bones crumbled away from age.

**10:35 am:**

"Did he say where exactly we had to go to look for this thing?" Dante asks as we enter a small room, bare except for a couple of old stone pillars placed beside a flight of stairs leading downwards.

"Erm, not exactly, but it'll probably be lower down somewhere." I add, which I know is an extremely unhelpful answer.

_A few hours later..._

**2:30 am:**

So far, we've gone down two flights of stairs, encountered rooms full of statues, doors chained shut, old stone chests, fire traps (!) and slabs of stone. And each room weirdly seems to look the same; sandy brick walls and tiled floors, piles of sand everywhere, bits of brick wall that turn out to he hidden doors, and even some mysterious holes in the walls and floors of some of the areas which I'm pretty sure were more traps. (Flora had a narrow escape with one of the fire traps when her wings almost caught fire).

On the plus side, we've found a few relics and piles of Ancient Coins. But on the downside, we're still no closer to finding this object, whatever and wherever it may be.

**2:35 am:**

As Ben turns the handle on a set of green double doors, Flora gives an exasperated sigh and wails, "Oh, Horus, where are you? We need to gaze through your famous eyes so we can find out where on earth this bloody thing is!"

I smother a giggle as the door swings open with a creak. Fancy Flora swearing! Never heard that before!

As we all troop into the room, my mouth nearly falls open in wonder. There, right at the end of the room, is a white sarcophagus, with six stone chests evenly spaced apart, lining both walls.

"Should we open the sarcophagus first?" I ask in a whisper, glancing at it as though I'm expecting the door to creak open and a mummy to appear.

"We'll leave it 'til last, shall we?" Ben asks, as I head towards one of the middle stone chests to examine it. It looks pretty ordinary, but you can never tell.

Dante crouches down beside me as I struggle to lift the heavy lid. I may be a vampire and all, but my supernatural strength seems to have waned a considerable amount since I got here. Maybe it's the hot temperature.

**2:37 am:**

"Here, let me." Together, Dante and I pull up the lid, which makes a very loud creaking noise, then we both stare at what's inside, not saying anything. A pile of gleaming Ancient Coins, a small cut turquoise stone and a bronze relic of what must be an Egyptian king. "Wow, look at it all!" I whisper, awestruck. "What should we do with it all when we've–"

**2:38 am:**

"Um, guys?" Ben's voice cuts in, sounding terrified. "I think you might want to have a look at this..."

"Just a minute, Ben." I say, too absorbed by the contents of the chest.

"No, Tilly," Dante shakily tugs at my arm, staring at something near the end of the room.

"What's wrong now?" I tear my gaze away from the chest. "It can't be that–_aaargh!"_

**2:39 am:**

The mummy standing beside its sarcophagus slowly turns its head towards us and begins to stumble forwards, rooting me to the spot in terror. Its bandages are unravelling in some places, the Egyptian garments that it's wearing are yellowed with age, and there are two gashes in the gauze where its eyes should be.

All four of us slowly take a few steps back, but it still comes closer, arms outstretched.

"It probably doesn't like us looking in its chest of special things." Dante mutters frantically. "Should we ask it whether its okay to look, but not touch?"

"Um," Flora squeaks in terror, her eyes wide as the mummy advances, "it doesn't look very friendly."

The mummy is now more than a few feet away, every step coming closer.

"Run!" Ben shouts in a panic, and we all rush for the exit and out into the tomb. We run back down the corridor, round a corner, past a hole in the wall, into a room with stone hierograph pictures on the walls and through a stone door.

**2:45 am:**

Finally, we stop running.

"Right, we're not opening any more sarcophagi until we're quite sure there's no mummy in them, all right?" Ben pants, leaning against the wall.

"Agreed." Flora says, fluttering her wings quickly to and fro.

I take a look round the room we're in now. The walls are made of a yellow brick, with a brown tiled flooring. The light from the torches on the walls gives off an eerie glow, throwing shadows over the statues and three sarcophagi placed in a circle on the other side of the room. And a strange light is cast over the stone chest in the middle of the room.

Hang on...

"Guys!" My voice rises in excitement. "I think this is the room we've been looking for!"

Dante looks round and grins at me. "At last! Horus is smiling down upon us." He looks at the stone chest. "Who wants to do the honours?"

**2:51 am:**

In the end, all of us decided to retrieve the object together (though Ben said that he'd keep an eye on each of the sarcophagi just in case). Putting a hand each on the lid, we open it up. And there it is. Between piles of Ancient Coins sits the object.

And for a moment, we just stare, gazing at it in stunned silence.

**Tuesday, 22nd January**

**11:05 am:**

"I can't believe that he had us risking our lives for a _baseball_." Dante says, looking devastated as we walk up to the door of Abdul's house. "I mean, we could have been killed in there by that mummy."

"Don't forget, though, at least we've had an adventure!" Flora says attempting a smile, though her wings are drooping. "And we're going sightseeing again this evening, so we can at least have the day off."

**11:06 am:**

Abdul answers the front door. When he sees Ben holding the baseball, he smiles all around at us. "Oh, thank you, thank you. I thought I would never find this again. My father handed this down to me, years ago, as it was his when he was small." Abdul takes the baseball from Ben and tosses it up and down. "You have well deserved your reward. Here is your pay– (he takes a bag of what must be Ancient Coins out of his kaftan pocket and hands them to Ben)– and I will settle your Visa levels as soon as I can."

Flora beams at him. "Thank you very much. We've had a lot of fun in the pyramids, actually. Haven't we?" She glances round at all of us, silently daring us to disagree.

Ben, Dante and I all answer, "Certainly!"

**11:09 am:**

As we all turn to leave, I notice that Abdul is pulling Ben aside and saying something to him. I can't think what, but all of a sudden, Ben's grinning at him and nodding.

"What was that about?" I ask him as he catches up to us.

"He wants to know if, later, we'd like to go on a sightseeing tour with him to Abu Simbel." Ben replies. "So I said, yes, that'd be great. And he also said that he liked my yellow T-shirt."

I raise an eyebrow at him. "Is that all? How thrilling."

"Until our sightseeing tour, I'm going to read my new book about the first mummy film director, and phone the rest of the family in Moonlight Falls." Flora says eagerly.

**11:11 am:**

I'm just about to say that I'm going to have a good look round the market again, when Dante gets closer to me and mutters, "Hey, Tilly, do you want to have our own sightseeing tour this afternoon?" He smiles at me and shrugs. "You know, just the two of us?"

**Wow...wonder what will happen there...? Gosh I'd love to go to Al Simhara just for the chance to explore the pyramids, though not to get chased off by a mummy... :P**


	8. Tombs And Tribulations Part II

**At long last, I'm back! I'm very sorry that I haven't updated in a while, but school has started back, and I haven't been home for ages (as I go to boarding school) so I couldn't update as school has blocked Fanfiction...grrrr...**

**Anyway, after suffering numerous bouts of writer's block, here we go...**

* * *

**Sightseeing Tour With Dante:**

**1:10 pm:**

I quickly run a hand through my hair and take a deep breath. _Right. I can do this, _I think, attempting to gather myself together as I turn round, smile and nod at Dante. _It's a sightseeing tour, for goodness' sake!_

"Hey Tilly, ready to go?"

"Sure!" I reply, heading over to where Dante is standing beside the road leading from the base camp. "So, um, where exactly are we going?"

"I though we'd maybe start at the Ruins Of Karnak," Dante replies, pointing in the direction we're most likely to be heading. "It's by the river a way away from here, but we'll get there."

"Excellent!" I say brightly. "So, let's go!"

**1:20 pm:**

Hmm. The Ruins of Karnak aren't as exciting as I thought they'd be. I was expecting to see the remains of an ancient Egyptian castle, with hidden stone chests full of Ancient Coins and caved-in walls, with maybe a moat around it. But all I can see is a pile of rubble with a few large stone pillars raised up to the sky like giant knobbly fingers, and a few stones scattered round the place.

Maybe I should have actually read the tourist brochure before coming here, instead of just looking at the pictures on the front. But who actually has time to read those things when there's exploring to be done?

**1:24 pm:**

Dante and I walk together over to one of the pillars to look at it more closely. There's some sort of inscription on the sides, but neither of us can make it out. So instead, we wander round the other side to see what we can find.

"Are you enjoying your holiday so far, Tilly?" Dante asks me as we meander along.

I nod. "Of course I am! I've got a kick out of going into the pyramids and exploring tombs, but I didn't much like getting chased by that mummy." I pull a face.

Dante chuckles. "Don't worry. If it had managed to catch up with you, I would have saved you, anyway."

My stomach does a flip. _He would have...saved me? Really?_

**1:25 pm:**

But instead of giving him a small, attractive smile like any normal person would do, I laugh and say, "While you ran in terror out of there like the rest of us?"

**2:55 pm:**

When we've finished exploring the Ruins of Karnak (and having managed to find a pile of Ancient Coins, a copper relic and a turquoise stone), Dante suggests we head off to the Pharaoh's Oasis, one of the few places here that has both a combination of grass and water at it. So the two of us head across the grass, towards the clear blue lake, bordered by more tall, floppy-leaved palm trees. The water is sparkling in the sunlight, and once or twice I catch a glimpse of something floating quickly through the water. A crocodile or fish, maybe.

"Is there meant to be anything special here?" I ask, as we walk nearer to the water.

"Like what?" Dante wonders, glancing at me .

"Like, tombs? Or wildlife, maybe, or–_ouch_!"

**2:57 pm:**

The next thing I know, I'm on my knees on the ground, rubbing the spot on my forehead where the branch hit me, while Dante is attempting to control his laughter.

"That's not funny, Dante!" I struggle to my feet in annoyance, my hand still clutching my head. "You know what, if you don't stop laughing, I'm going home!" I attempt to turn around and march the other way, but he grabs hold of my hand, turning me round.

"No, don't go, Tilly! I promise, I'll stop laughing now. Are you all right?" He comes closer to me and gently pulls my hand away from my face. "Don't worry. I'm sure that you won't have sustained inner head injuries." He smiles at me, and all I can think of is how amazingly cute he looks when he smiles...

**3:00 pm:**

"Oh my God, look, there's a parakeet!"

As soon as the words burst out of me, I want to crawl out of my own body and thump myself to death. _Honestly. _Why couldn't I have said something normal? Or better yet, said nothing at all? _Why?_

Dante glances at the green and yellow bird near us flapping its wings, grins, and raises an eyebrow. "Yes, look. Well, that's certainly something you don't see every day."

As if on cue, the bird lets out a sound that is a combination of a high-pitched miaow and a quiet screech. It sounds so ridiculous that both Dante and I start laughing, and have difficulty controlling ourselves. The bird looks at us with an expression of what looks like bewilderment, then hops away from us, indignantly flapping its wings.

"Goodbye, feathered friend." Dante calls, waving at it.

How adorably weird.

**3:15 pm:**

After Dante and I have walked all round the oasis (which doesn't take long, as there's not much to look at apart from the water, palm trees and grass), we unanimously decide to head back in order to get ready for the tour with Abdul Kamar. Together, as we walk along the bridge that leads back to the markets and base camp, Dante takes hold of my hand. And I have to admit, I like the way it makes me feel. Just happy, I guess.

**3:17 pm:**

We stop in the middle of the bridge and spend a moment looking at the horizon. Not saying anything, just looking. The sun is lower in the sky, casting noticeable shadows over the trees and making the sand glow. The blue water glitters in the sun and a cool breeze blows through the air.

Then Dante turns to me and says, "Tilly, there's something I have to say, that I've been meaning to tell you since the Van Gould Christmas party. And it's just that..." He pauses and looks a bit nervous. Cute, but nervous. "I want to say that I like you. As in, a lot. And I was wondering..."

**3:20 pm:**

I'm near a state of hypertension by this point.

"...do you want to go out with me?"

And his eyes are a lovely inky-blue colour which I've never noticed before, and his dark hair is sticking slightly up at the back...and all I can think of is how I wouldn't mind if he kissed me...

**3:21 pm:**

And then he does.

**3:30 pm:**

I'm not how long we stayed on the bridge for, kissing. Quite a while, I think.

But the point is that, wow, Dante is an amazing kisser. Like, _amazing._

**4:37 pm:**

When we both arrive back at the base camp, Ben winks at me. "So, how did your sightseeing tour go? Had fun? Did either of you see anything, erm, interesting, and worth seeing?"

I glare at him.

Ben raises his hands. "Hey, now! You know I don't mean it that way!"

Flora then sidles up to us and looking genuinely interested. "So, where about did you two go? Did you go, um, downtown at all?"

**4:40 pm:**

I can feel my face flame red. I'm going to have to kill Flora Goodfellow.

Flora rolls her eyes. "To the markets, duh!" Then she turns her attention to Ben, trying not to appear morbidly curious. "So Ben, while Tilly and Dante were sightseeing, and while I was at the markets trying to charm a snake–"

"_What?!_" I gasp.

Flora shakes her head at me. "Don't worry. After I managed to treat the area where the snake bit me, I felt fine. But what were you doing, Ben?"

**4:41 pm:**

Ben looks a bit hesitant. Finally, he tells us that Abdul rang and asked if he wanted to go to the markets and look at relics. So the two of them did, and after many conversations between them about Al Simhara's history and tourist hotspots (Abdul), and Moonlight Falls and its supernatural wonders (Ben), Abdul asked Ben for his number. Which, needless to say, he gave him.

**4:45 pm:**

_Hmm...seems like there's more going on between Ben and Abdul than we thought,_ I think, as the four of us stand beside the base camp noticeboard to wait for Abdul to take us on his sightseeing tour. _So what's the real deal with the two of them?_

Abdul then arrives, beaming around at us, tells us that he hopes we enjoy seeing the sights of Al Simhara, we could all have dinner at the markets later, and that our Visas have been increased one level (which makes Flora sigh with relief).

Then, we set off.

**6:23 pm:**

So far, this sightseeing tour has been amazing. First we went to Abul Simbel and gazed up at the massive stone statues in wonder and awe. Well, I did. While Abdul was droning on for ten minutes about its history (which, needless to say, had Ben hanging onto every word), Dante and Flora were engaging in a stick swordfight. Which Flora won, because she broke Dante's stick within the first five minutes. When it was time to enter the tomb, it was by Abdul looking annoyed and muttering obscenities under his breath that we found out that entry required a donation of a relic or small rock, which none of us had with us. Eventually, after Ben pointed out that the stone statues looked as though they were silently laughing at us by now (which I have to say, I agreed with), it was decided that we may as well travel to the Sphinx to have a look round, which we did.

**6:26 pm:**

Anyway, after viewing numerous tomb rooms, finding a few piles of Ancient Coins, avoiding a couple of suspicious-looking sarcophagi and traipsing up many flights of stone steps, we finally came to the statue of the Soulpeace. I've seen it on the front of postcards, but when you're actually standing in front of it, it's a different story altogether.

"This is where unfortunate Sims who suffer from the mummy's curse come to clense and refresh their spirits." Abdul explains, gesturing towards the glowing bluey-green statue.

The encounter with the mummy from earlier flashes into my mind, and silently thank my lucky stars that none of us got cursed.

**6:35 pm:**

Though, I must admit, it would have been quite cool to get cursed and then have a cleansing ritual of some sort. Like Buddha, but Egyptian. I think.

**Thursday, 24th January**

**10:47 am:**

The past couple of days have passed without too much incident. I'm sort of sad that we're going home tomorrow, though, because this holiday has really opened my eyes. I mean, to the fact that before coming here, my life lacked any sort of real adventure and vigor.

**10:49 am:**

I've bought all sorts of souvenirs for everyone back home. This includes small copper statues for Becky and Emelie, a mummy music box for Dwayne and some sharwarma pet food for Lydia and Fred. Flora has bought Pip a replica of the eye of Horus. She's only got him the one eye though, because she says that otherwise Pip would forget he was supposed to be a fairy and just travel through Horus' eyes to get everywhere.

**10:53 am:**

Oh, almost forgot to mention, last night Dante, Ben, Flora and I all went to the Tomb of Discovery to have yet another look round some tombs, then came back to the markets. Abdul met us there, and while he, Ben, Flora and I were gossiping about some locals of Al Simhara, Dante decided that he would attempt to try snake charming. Big mistake. The snake hissed menacingly at him almost as soon as he picked up the flute.

**11:15 am:**

However, we were then interrupted by a short guy with glasses whose spectacled eyes looked like an owl's, who Ben whispered to me was the local relic analyser and something else which he couldn't quite remember. He waddled (yes, waddled), up to Abdul and said, with a sinister smile, "Kamal, how long it's been. I hope that you have been looking after our tourists and not letting them run into any harm, yes?"

"Well, actually–" Flora begins, but I cut her off by kicking her under the table.

"Indeed, Kek, I have." Abdul replies civilly. "I don't see what business it is of yours, but I can assure you–"

**11:20 am:**

At that moment, Dante's voice yelled, "Ow! This thing isn't poisonous, is it?" He then hurriedly shut the lid of the basket and shook his snake-bitten hand. "It burns! Guys, what do I do?"

As Flora and I hurried over to Dante to look at his hand, and as Flora helped him attend to the bite, Owl Eyes took Abdul around the side of the building for a minute or two and had a 'quiet word'. We all heard every word he shouted. He said that, as the Egyptian safety inspector, it was his job to make sure that tourists like us didn't stray into harm's way, and that we actually wanted to come back to Egypt after our stay. He threatened to inform the authorities about Dante's injury and that didn't Abdul know that the practice of snake charming had become illegal since a long time ago, and...well, I needn't go on. Anyway, five minutes later when Owl Eyes had finished his rant, he marched off, probably to go and prod his beaky nose into other Sim's business.

**11:26 am:**

Poor Abdul looked very downcast as he emerged from the shadow of the building. But at least he cheered up again once Dante said he had recovered the use of his hand and said that in future, he would leave snake charming to the professionals.

"I won't worry, though." Abdul assured us as he got up to bid us goodbye, "In Egyptian, Kek's name means 'darkness', so that explains a lot."

**Friday 25th January**

**5:30 pm:**

Home again! Oh how good it is to be home! On the plane ride back, I was able to sit with Dante this time (yuss!) which was an added bonus. Lydia and Fred were overjoyed to see Ben and I, and even more so when I presented then with their presents of Egyptian pet food. After Ben and I had finished fussing over them, the phone rang. It was Emelie, demanding to know every single detail of our trip. After a bit of a dispute, I said that I'd come to her place in a couple of days, and that she'd ring Becky and tell her. So it looks like the Supernatural Trinity are back!

**5:38 pm:**

Then, the added drama ensured of Ben and I trying to unpack our suitcases. Why on earth did I decide to pack so much? I am going to go and buy a bigger suitcase first thing tomorrow, for future travels.

The only way I was actually able to unpack my suitcase was if I took all the relics and souvenirs out first, then dragged it upstairs. But the only problem is, where should I put all my lovely Egyptian relics?

**7:21 pm:**

Oh, sod it. I'll sort it out in the morning when I've recovered from jetlag.

**Sunday 27th Januray**

**11:14 am:**

I stand at Emelie's front door, waiting for her to come and answer the door. I can't wait to tell her and Becky all about our holiday in Al Simhara. All about the mummies, snake charming, and the–

"_Tilly!_ Hey!"

Emelie stands on the doorstep, smiling at me. I can see Becky behind her, waving frantically at me. I grin at both of them, hurry up the steps, and we all fall into a massive hug, the three of us laughing and trying to speak all at once.

"I'm so jealous of you, going to see the pyramids and everything–"

"How was Emmy and Bridgeport, did you see–"

"I have got so much to tell you about my Sunset Valley holiday–"

"Did you get to see your summer Snowflake Day?"

**11:24 am:**

Eventually, we make our way to the living room, where Emelie makes us all hot chocolate, and we tell each other all about our holidays. I must say, Emelie and Becky are a very good audience. They look surprised and shocked in all the right places, and when I get to the part about us getting chased by the mummy, Becky nearly sends her coffee cup flying all over the room.

"And how was it spending time with Dante?" Emelie asks, her eyes fixed firmly on me.

I can feel my face going pink. "Well, erm, we went sightseeing and...stuff." I trail off feebly, though I can't escape the grin spreading over my face.

**11:27 am:**

I had to tell them, of course. And afterwards, Becky claps her hands excitedly and says that she knows the best place where they do wedding cakes. That's after she finally stops laughing at Flora's comment about Dante and I going 'downtown'.

**11:30 am:**

Then, it's time to hear Emelie and Becky's news. Emelie says that her holiday with Emmy was great, and that she went to her first movie premiere for a new film of Emmy's called, _'Fifty Shades Of Clay'. _Which is, incidentally, supposed to be about a famous sculptor. I kid you not. She also said that while she was there, she helped Emmy adopt a couple of stray kittens, went to a twilight concert and met a nice, 'normal' guy there called Robert (by the end of the concert they had exchanged numbers) and she says that Emmy told her to tell me that my mum sends her love. Which is nice to hear.

Meanwhile, Becky says that during their Sunset Valley holiday, she and Dennis had gone swimming at the beach and she had caught her first fish. She showed Emelie and I a photo of her with the fish, which I have to say looked rather creepy. Black and oily-looking, with huge eyes and a gaping mouth.

**11:57 am:**

"And you ate it?" I ask, feeling repulsed by the thought.

"No." Becky says airily. "We were going to, but when we found out that the manager of the motel we were staying at specialized in taxidermy, we gave it to him. Such fun!"

"And what did he do with it then?" Emelie asks, as Jasper pads into the room and begins to slowly chase his tail in a circle.

Becky grins. "He gave it to us to keep. So now, we have a stuffed fish hanging in pride of place in the living room."

**12:00 pm:**

I really honestly don't know what to say to that.

If I ever need my living room redecorated, I will not enlist the interior design services of Becky Younan.

**12:34 pm:**

When I arrive back from Emelie's, I'm surprised to see Ben's car parked in front of the house, with the boot up. Taking a closer look, I can see that it's full of cardboard boxes. Why on earth...?

A feeling of something like foreboding is creeping over me, and I have to take a deep breath to process the situation.

_Doesn't Ben want to live with me any more?_ I think, as I walk slowly up the front steps and push the door open. _What's going on?_

**12:37 pm:**

There he is in the hallway, packing something into a cardboard box. A quick flash of red tells me that it's his red Christmas pudding jumper. He must sense that I'm there, because he straightens up and qives me a half-smile. "There! All my sweatshirts done, folded neatly and organised by colour."

I don't say anything. I can only stare at the box, which is filled to the top with Ben's colourful woolen jumpers. I can feel a slight lump forming in my throat as I stare at his suitcase, remembering the day he first turned up at my door after Megan threw him out...

**12:39 pm:**

Ben knows that something's wrong. "Tilly?"

I try to speak, but it's not easy when a lump is forming in my throat. "Ben, why are all these–"(I indicate the boxes strewn round the hall– )"here? What's going on?"

Ben stares at me. "Hadn't I already told you what's going on?"

**12:40 pm:**

And as I numbly shake my head no, Ben says it.

"Tilly...I'm moving out."

* * *

**Gosh...that's the second bomb that Ben's dropped on Tilly so far...hope he'll be OK! Stay tuned for next chapter (which may take a while to update but please don't give up on me, or anything). I'll try my best to keep you posted :) Also the next chapter is going to be quite intense...any ideas on what you think might happen?**


	9. Return Of The She-Devil

**So here's the next installment of Tilly's diary which I hope you like, and lives up to your expectations, hee hee :P And as you can imagine it involves a fair share of shocks and surprises...dun dun dun!**

* * *

**Friday, 1st February**

**2:20 pm:**

Ben moved out a few days ago.

He's now living in a new apartment block that's halfway across town. I went to see it yesterday for the first time, all white wood, dark grey doors and windows, and mini flower gardens outside each room. Ben's room is on the ground floor, and is small but nice-looking. Medium-sized windows looking out towards the road, cream-coloured walls and dark blue carpet. But even so, the whole thing had a weird effect on the both of us. It made us not want to talk about anything.

**2:22 pm:**

I remember Ben saying, "This is going to feel so weird for a while. I mean, we won't be able to do the things we used to, like taking Lydia and Fred to the park and getting ice-creams. And we won't be able to stay up late anymore, watching _Romantic Rendezvous_ on TV, and gossiping about what guys we thought were the hottest."

I gave him a half-smile. "Yeah, I know. I'm going to miss that, too." I glanced round at the room, all furnished apart from the blank walls. "But at the same time, it'll do us good to move on."

Ben returned the half-smile, and sighed. "Yeah. I guess so, Tilly."

**2:27 pm:**

I noticed that when I got home, the house seemed strangely empty. Even Lydia seemed to have lost the wag in her tail when she trotted into the hallway to greet me.

I stooped down to give her a scratch behind the ears. "Lydia, it looks like you, Fred and I are going to have to get used to just being us again."

She seemed to understand; after chasing her tail for a while, she included Fred in a game of 'Find Tilly's rubber plant and chew it to pieces.'

**10:30 pm:**

I think that I'm going to start my writing again tomorrow. After a rather long break, my head is full of ideas which will soon to be displayed in black typeface on the pages of tomorrow's top-selling stories. Hopefully. The ideas mainly consist of my Egyptian holiday, involving tombs, snake charming and mummies, which will likely end up in the science fiction area of the bookshop. At least if I'm telling the story of getting chased by the mummy, it won't seem that weird to those who read it.

**Sunday, 3rd February**

**9:47 am:**

Dante rang up this morning 'just for a chat'. Aww. I filled him in on the Ben scenario, and he was really nice about it. After he had said that change is always hard in the beginning, even if it is for the better, he wanted to know if I'd come over to his house in a few days. He didn't exactly say what for, he said it was a surprise, then said goodbye before I could ask him what it was.

**1:13 pm:**

My novel is going rather well at the moment, aside from a couple of bouts of writer's block, and the fact that I nearly went to pieces due to not being able to remember the name of one of the famous pharaohs I learned about. I still can't.

Was it King Timbucktoo?

Or Queen Hatshepsut?

**1:14 pm:**

Oh. _Horus_. That's the one.

**2:21 pm:**

I've just finished writing the part about snake charming, when my mobile rings.

"Hey Ben." I state, leaning back in the chair. "What's up?"

"Hi Tilly." He sounds relieved, probably that I'm not flat-out begging him to move back into my house again. "I was just wondering, if you're not busy, if you want to go for a coffee this afternoon?"

"Love to." I say, although I'm having an very difficult time restraining myself from asking him something extremely immature, like, "Are the beds in your new flat more bouncy and comfier than mine? Is that why you've stayed where you have?"

**2:23 pm:**

Instead, I compose myself, and say brightly, "So shall we go to that new coffee house in about half an hour?"

**3:00 pm:**

When Ben turns up and walks through the door of The Flyer's Coffee House, I get up from my table and give him a hug. "It's so good to see you again, you know?"

He laughs. "Tilly, you make it seem like you haven't seen me in a year, not just a few days ago." He sees something under the table, crouches down and smiles. "Is that a waving black and white tail I see before me?"

**3:05 pm:**

OK. Don't laugh. I had to bring Fred, because Lydia has recently made the acquaintance of a brown and white male corgi down the street belonging to the Swain family. As a result, she seems to think that he's pretty crash-hot for a dog, and so he has temporarily replaced Fred as a playmate. Poor Fred. So to cheer him up, I bought him along with me to meet Ben.

**3:10 pm:**

Ben laughs when I tell him. "Oh dear. Poor Fred." He reaches down to stroke Fred, who is now twining himself around Ben's chair, purring. "Maybe we'll have to find him a fine young female cat for a companion."

"Oh!" A thought occurs to me, and I grin at Ben. "So, Ben, any word from Abdul?"

**4:52 pm:**

It's been a great hour or so. Ben's told me that he and Abdul keep in touch, so that's definitely something. And after telling him all about my new Egyptian book, and about Dante telling me to come over to his house for a surprise (we spend at least ten minutes speculating what it could be), we gossip about pretty much everything until it's time to go.

We walk together down the street in silence towards where my car is parked, with Fred trotting along beside us. It's a nice kind of silence, though, and I'm just thinking about nothing in particular, when all of a sudden–

**4:55 pm:**

"_Ben._ How nice to see you again, at last."

Ben's figure stiffens beside me, and the two of us slowly turn around. But even before I can see her face, I think I know who this girl is.

And I'm not wrong.

**4:56 pm:**

Megan Rumpp stands in front of us, with her arms folded. She's wearing a short green dress that shows way more than it should, and black wedges. She's smiling at the both of us, but I'm not fooled. She looks like a cat about to pounce on a bird. Or more correctly, a lion about to maul Ben to pieces.

Megan shakes her head, baring her teeth in an approximation of what I think is meant to be a smile. "It's been a while since we last met!" She turns her head and looks at me, slowly raising an eyebrow. "Tina, right?"

"Actually, it's Tilly. Tilly Tierney." I make myself smile, too. _Act natural, Tilly._

"Yes, of course." She spits my name out. "_Tilly."_

**4:58 pm:**

"Megan, what the hell are you doing here?" Ben asks exasperatedly. "Whatever you want, I'm not interested."

She rolls her eyes, presumably trying to be sexy, but looking desperate. "Oh, come on! I don't want anything from _you._ Why would I, after you refused to give me what I wanted? What I _needed?_"

"Look," Ben says angrily, "What you wanted might have been all right for you, but not for me. I refused to go through with it because I have way more self-respect than to embarrass myself at Tilly's party doing what you wanted me to–"

**5:00 pm:**

"Oh, so you're with _her_ now, are you?" Megan shrieks, pointing her finger at me. "And now you...you _live_ together, or something? I _always knew_ that it would be because of her, you didn't want to do it with me because you were in love with her!" Her voice drops flat and mean as her gaze bores into each of us. "Look, Ginger, you may have won this time, but I swear, the minute Ben gets bored of you and your stupid pretty-little-girl parties and whatnot, it'll be all over. There's no way that you can compete with me, and you bloody well know it."

**5:03 pm:**

Fred gives a low growl, and fluffs his fur up. Ben looks shocked and angry, and I'm having extreme difficulty stopping myself from throwing a string of obscenities at her.

"Look, Megan," I begin, my voice shaking slightly with anger, "You've got absolutely no idea what this is all about. Ben and I aren't in love, that's crazy! And you've got no right to throw accusations and insults at us left, right and centre, even though it is true that we've been previously living together, all because you threw Ben out of your house and he had nowhere else to go!" I narrow my eyes at her, and all of a sudden, she looks scared. Just for an instant.

**5:04 pm:**

Fred growls at her again, and the she-devil looks at him with distaste. "Ergh. Stupid cat." Her expression flattens out to mean again. "So, Ben Harrison, once and for all, I am going to ask you why you panicked and ran out on me like you did. Like, seriously, I mean what I said at that party, are you gay or something?"

I dart a shocked glance at Ben, who's breathing deeply.

_What is he going to say?_

And then, to my utter disbelief and amazement, Ben answers, quite calmly, "Yes. I may not have been able to say it before, but I can tell you now. I am absolutely, and totally, one hundred percent gay."

**5:06 pm:**

Megan simply stares at Ben for a couple of seconds. "_What?"_

"Megan, I'm gay." Ben shoots a glance at me, and I nod in encouragement. "You asked why, and I've just told you. And that's the answer, once and for all."

The she-devil looks as if she's not quite sure what to say. After a few moments, she shakes her head. "You really are pathetic, Ben. If you really are gay, then why did you go out with me in the first place? And you–" she turns round and points her finger at me again, "with your weird pale vampire complexion and last season style..."

Her voice trails away as she stares at Fred. Or rather, Fred is staring at her with his huge eyes. Not doing anything.

Just looking and looking.

**5:15 pm:**

Megan ended up turning round and storming off down the street, not saying anything except for a muttered, "This isn't over yet." And Fred just kept on staring at her, his green eyes round and huge. Like cat hypnosis.

After she had left, Ben hugged me. "Thank God that's over."

I smiled. "And you stood up to her!" I picked up Fred and petted him. "You supercat! You have quite literally, outstared Megan Rumpp!"

And after Ben and I had parted ways, Fred looked as though he was smiling all the way home.

**Wednesday, 6th February**

**11:57 am:**

I went over to Dwayne's house this morning along with Flora for a) a catch-up, and b) to tell him about Lydia and her doggy admirer. Flora said she wanted to know how the Wolff family had got along in Riverview, which caused the two of us to sit there for at least half an hour while Dwayne enthused about the countryside. He said that, 'the kids loved it, went horse riding and visited the stables and everything. Erica bought her very own embroidery piece to hang on the wall–"(he indicated a 'Home Sweet Home' tapestry hanging by the door)"–and I had my own fair share on entertainment, too. Rode a motorized bull!" He grinned at us. "So yeah, we've all had a great time, Tilly and Flora."

**12:00 pm:**

I wanted to ask if he had also managed to sample any prime beef or lamb while he was there, but I was too polite to say anything.

**12:09 pm:**

But after Flora had finished babbling on about Egypt, I told Dwayne about Lydia and her new-found corgi friend. He listened to it all, then leaned back in his chair and chuckled. "Don't worry about that sort of thing, Tilly." he said. "Dogs like Lydia always suffer through the phase of canine courtship, but then come bouncing merrily back, you know?"

"Yes," I said, desperately, "But surely, out of good manners, I should maybe ask the Swains if it's okay to buy them a little house or something, just while they figure out their new-found love for each other?"

**12:12 pm:**

Both Flora and Dwayne looked at me like I was crazy. Maybe I am. But then again, after the return of the she-devil and the fact that Lydia may soon be having little Corgmations or Dalgis, I don't understand the world I've just walked into.

**3:43 pm:**

I shut the door of the car and walk up the footpath to Dante's house. He must have heard my car, as when I look up, he's standing in the doorway, waving at me.

"Hey, Dante." I say, smiling at him. "So, what's this surprise you say you've got?"

He draws me closer and gives me a quick kiss. "I can't tell you yet, Tilly, but I promise you, you'll love it."

"Sounds good." I reply, my mind whirling as I wonder what it could be. A candlelight dinner? A trip to somewhere?

**5:47 pm:**

"Can you please tell me where we're going?" I plead as I stare at my reflection in the mirror, wearing my light blue Bridgeport dress with black heels. As I glance at the dress, I remember the first time I wore it, attempting to find the best hotspot in Moonlight Falls, and ending up meeting Emelie. _It seems years ago,_ I think, as Dante takes my hand.

"Ready when you are." he says, dressed in a white shirt, grey trousers and black shoes. Giving my hand a squeeze, he smiles and says, "You look beautiful, Tilly."

Returning the smile, I turn to him and say, "Let's go, then."

**6:00 pm:**

As we get out of the car, the sounds of loud music and cheering catch my attention. The trees, waving in the slight breeze around us are decked out in colourful lights, lighting the way through the trees towards a clearing. The dark shapes of Sims are making their way towards the source of the sound, talking excitedly in groups. And as Dante and I walk along the lit-up pathway and around a large tree, there it is. A glowing stage, which is where the loud music is coming from. A girl, dressed all in black with bright, long pink hair and a swirly tattoo on her arm is sitting at the DJ booth on the stage, and all the other Sims in the audience are dancing with one another, occasionally grabbing a drink from one of the tables at the front.

"I thought you'd like it." Dante says affectionately, as I gaze round in wonder.

"That I do." I say, grinning at him. "A twilight concert? This is amazing!"

"So, now that we're here..." Dante turns to me, straightens up and bows to me in a ridiculously old-fashioned way as I giggle, "Tilly Tierney, would you do me the honour of dancing with me?"

**7:57 pm:**

This concert is one of the best events I've been to in ages. I've been dancing a lot with Dante (and by a lot, I mean for a couple of hours now), but by now, my legs are ready to fall off.

"Should we sit down for a bit and get a drink?" I gasp, brushing the hair back from my face.

Dante agrees to this, and we meander towards the table by the stage where the drinks are. As I take my drink from Dante, thanking him, my gaze falls upon the girl with the pink hair, who is now leaning back in her chair, looking around at everyone in the audience as they dance with each other.

"It's just the right sort of night for a concert." Dante comments, taking a sip from his drink. And I notice that as he does, the girl with the pink hair looks in our direction, and Dante looks right back at her, their gaze locked on each other. Her expression changes to one of surprise, then she quickly looks back down at her equipment, just as Dante puts his empty glass back onto the table and grabs my hand. "Come on, let's sit down for a bit."

**8:34 pm:**

Dante has just left our table, saying that he has to go to the bathroom. I, however, can't stop thinking about the girl with the pink hair. I wonder who she is? Maybe she's a friend of his? Or maybe they went to school together, or...well, I don't know.

**8:40 pm:**

I'm interrupted by Dante arriving back and saying something about how there's someone here who he hasn't seen for ages and who he has to talk to to 'sort things out'. Whatever wants sorting out, I don't know, as then he disappears into the crowd, saying he won't be long.

**9:00 pm:**

I decide to go and find Dante. Maybe he's seen an old friend who he hasn't seen for ages, and is busy having a catch-up. Hopefully, it won't take too long. I'm in the mood for another dance. This time, a slow one.

Edging around other Sims, I catch a glimpse of him up ahead, with his back turned to me. He looks as if he's talking to someone. As I get closer, he moves a bit to the left, and with him is the girl with the pink hair. What the...

**9:01 pm:**

A tingle of worry is seeping over me, but I brush it aside as best I can. I've now angled myself so that I can see the two of them quite clearly, and am able to catch snippets of the conversation.

"...it was fun while it lasted, I know." The girl with the pink hair runs her hand through it, then puts her hand on her hip. "But I thought you knew that even while you may have someone else, it's never stopped me before."

Dante sighs. "We went out for a few times, it was fun, but that's all." He raises his hands. "I've got a new girlfriend. She's called Tilly, and she's amazing."

Pink Hair Girl nods. "I know, and she sounds lovely. But even so, you know me, Dante. Like Miley Cyrus once said, I can't be tamed."

**9:03 pm:**

Then, she leans forward and kisses him.

**9:04 pm:**

Time freezes around me. There's a muffled roaring sound in my head, getting louder with every second.

I don't believe it.

_I can't believe this is happening._

**9:05 pm:**

I watch, numb with shock, as for a couple of seconds, Dante just stands there, letting himself be kissed by his ex-girlfriend with the bright pink hair. Then he pushes her away and says something which I don't catch, looks up and sees me standing there. An expression of shock crosses his face, and all of a sudden, I turn and stumble away, my eyes burning with tears that are threatening to fall.

**9:20 pm:**

As I near the car, Dante catches up with me. "Tilly? Oh God, just let me explain." He reaches out to me but I push him away. "Please, just–"

"Go away!" I shout, the tears falling freely now. "I don't care what you've got say, Dante, because if you really loved me at all, you wouldn't be seen dead kissing another girl!"

Dante stops, looking hurt. "Tilly, she was the one who kissed me! She was just my ex, it doesn't mean anything!"

"Then why did you let yourself be kissed by her, then?" I cry, wheeling round to face him. "You never told me about her anyway! And I thought that part of a relationship was to be honest with each other!"

**9:23 pm:**

"Look, Tilly, we ended it a long time ago!" Dante shouts. "You never asked if I had anyone else before you, so it doesn't matter! It was just a harmless fling, it's not like I'm still sleeping with her or anything–"

He breaks off sharply, realizing what he's just said. Inside of me, I feel something falling, as a wave of shock crashes down on top of me.

"_Still?"_ I want to shout, but it comes out as a whisper. "Dante, I honestly thought that you weren't the type to lie to me."

Dante shakes his head, still angry. "Well at least I've never fallen in love with a gay guy before! It was pretty obvious that you were trying to seduce Ben at the party when we first met, and attempted to make him jealous by flirting with me, but I put it all behind me because I knew that that wasn't the real you!" He shakes his head and points at me. "Try being honest yourself!"

**9:25 pm:**

I storm away from him, my eyes blurry, stumbling in my heels. Through the trees and down the road to call a taxi to go home. I'm sobbing by now, not only because it looks like I'll never have a boyfriend again, but because everything that Dante has said tonight has been true, and I hate him for it.

And myself.

And by now, I'm crying too hard to even swear.

* * *

**What did you think? That chapter was rather emotionally draining to write...poor Tilly. Hopefully things will get resolved soon...or maybe not...I'll keep you guessing!**


	10. Love, Actually

**Hey guys! Once again I'm back, despite being extremely busy, but I've kept on with my writing, nevertheless :) So here we are, what with Tilly being miserable about Dante, and Dante being a bit of an idiot (let's face it)...anyway, here we go...**

* * *

**Saturday, 9th February**

**10:13 am:**

Forever alone.

Once again.

How on earth am I going to go on?

**10:14 am:**

I am now a thousand percent sure that I will never, ever have another boyfriend. When I'm eighty or so, I'll end up living in a big house with one cat for every year of being alone. And eventually, I'll die, miserable and alone, and all my cats will eventually turn on me, as they will have found other Sims or animals to go and have fun with.

**10:15 am:**

I haven't spoken to Dante at all since the fiasco at the concert. He's tried to ring me, presumably trying to grovel on his knees at my feet until I take him back. Well, not going to happen. If he wants to go round kissing every single one of his ex-girlfriends (even though it was true that _she_ kissed him first), then he can just bloody well forget about it.

**10:17 am:**

The doorbell's ringing. Oh, God. I'm not dragging myself out of bed to go and get it. It's probably Emelie, or Becky. I rang them a day or so ago to tell them all about my sad tale about Dante. But while Emelie was hissing on about stalking him, then drinking every drop of his blood for revenge, and while Becky tried to offer her words of wisdom ("He's not worth it, Tilly. There are plenty more fish in the sea...just grab your rod and go fishing, girl!"), I zoned out a bit, trying to stop myself from crying even more.

**10:19 am:**

I feel an almighty jolt as someone bounces onto my bed, the springs creaking. "Tilly Tierney, it's time for you to get out of that bed and stop feeling sorry for yourself!"

I raise my head above the bedcovers and stare into Ben's brown eyes, which are full of a mixture of anxiety and determination. Pushing myself up into a sitting position, I run a hand through my rather messy hair.

"Ben, what are you doing here?" I mumble, looking at him. "And how did you find out about–" I try to say Dante's name, but fail.

"Do you honestly think that if everything was all right, Becky would have called me up late last night to tell me how down you are?" Ben demands, scrutinizing me. "I know that this hurts, Tilly, but you will get over it. Don't you worry." He crawls up beside me and puts an arm around my shoulder.

**10:23 am:**

"How would you know how I'm feeling right now?" I choke out. "You don't!"

Ben shakes his head. "Maybe I don't, Tilly. But I do know that sitting here moping isn't doing you any good. And I certainly do know that all your other friends and I are here for you, okay? Even Flora has your back. Trust me, if I hadn't managed to put my foot down very firmly indeed, I'm pretty sure she would have stormed over to Dante's house and cursed him something terrible. Turned him into a toad, or something."

I manage a laugh. "Flora? Really?"

**10:25 am:**

"There's one more thing." Ben says. "You have to give Dante a chance to explain himself. Whether you like it or not, you're going to have to hear each other out."

"But–" I try to think of some lame excuse (as right now, I'm not sure that I'd even want to be within ten metres of Dante), but Ben holds up a hand. "Please, Tilly?"

I shrug and give a half-smile. "Sure. Whatever, then."

**2:40 pm:**

Ben was right. I've only just realized that I've spent the past few days in a sorry state, and haven't done anything to help myself. Lydia and Fred have been worriedly venturing into my bedroom every so often, possibly to check that I haven't curled up and died from a broken heart. Even Bonehilda has been tactful and hasn't ventured into my room to clean it up. Well, not any more. Recovery, though it may be a slow one, is starting first thing tomorrow morning. I am determined.

**2:42 pm:**

Well, as determined as you can get, wearing a pair of cuddly pink PJ's, and cuddled on the couch with the pets watching the end of _Super Shopping Network. _

After all, it's important to give these things time, right?

**Sunday, 10th February**

**3:22 pm:**

Today has gone surprisingly well, in terms of my 'recovery'. I've even managed to sit myself down and finish my Egyptian book! There's just a bit of tweaking to be done, but it's pretty much all done. Pip rang me around midday and said that Flora and him were hosting a 'Wings' themed party that night, and that I was invited, as he thought I might need cheering up.

I asked casually, and said, "So Pip, just out of curiosity, how many fairies are attending the party? Because if the theme is 'Wings', then..."

He laughed and said, "Flora pretty much did all the inviting, Tilly, so I'm really not sure!" He paused for a second, then added, "But if you wanted to break the stereotype in terms of your themed outfit, then go ahead!"

**3:24 pm:**

Hmm. I rather think I will.

**7:42 pm:**

_At the Goodfellow residence..._

So far, at least ninety percent of the party population are fairies, sporting the biggest, most colourful wings I've ever seen, which in Moonlight Falls, is saying something. The rest of the guests are made up of Dwayne and Erica, who are both dressed in matching red and yellow outfits, and helicopter caps. And then, there's me.

Dressed in a black and yellow bumblebee outfit.

With an wobbly antennae to accessorize.

**7:45 pm:**

Dwayne ventures over towards me. "Hey, Tilly." He gives me a big wolfy grin that shows most of his teeth. "Nice outfit."

"Thanks." I straighten up and adjust my antennae, which has leaned noticeably to one side. "What type of helicopter are you and Erica supposed to be?"

"We're the talking helicopter Bubba Bee from that TV show _Kidszone_." Dwayne says, indicating his helicopter cap. "He's a good sort, Bubba. He's the only character on TV nowadays that I can really understand. I mean, he has a real voice that doesn't squeak and isn't high-pitched like all those other God-awful animated characters."

**7:46 pm:**

_Right..._

**8:25 pm:**

I've been dancing with Erica, Pip and Dwayne for a while now, and are enjoying myself very much. Flora keeps dancing through the room every quarter hour with a crowd of her fairy friends behind her, and asking excitedly, "Having fun, everyone?" All her fairy posse then screech, "Yes, of course!" then move through the crowd after her. All this would be fine, apart from the fact that I've noticed that Flora's eyes are unusually bright, and that every so often, she rises a few inches above the ground before landing unsteadily with a loud thump. Plus, the amount of nectar in the bottle keeps disappearing at an alarming rate. Oh dear.

**8:43 pm:**

"So, how are Lydia and Fred getting on?" Dwayne asks, reaching for a glass of nectar (I think it's truffle flavour) and downing it in one. "And how about Lydia's doggy admirer?"

I take a sip of the nectar, which is rather pleasant-tasting, and reply, "Good, thanks. Fred is just, well, as Fred-like as he can be. He does this wide-eyed, staring sort of thing. Like this." I open my eyes wide in an imitation of Fred, which makes Dwayne laugh. "And as for Lydia, I think that the whole canine courtship ordeal is going well. You know, I'm sure that this male corgi called Samuel adores her in his own way, playing fetch and chase-the-bone with her and looking at her with loving puppy-dog eyes..." My voice trails off as an image of Dante flashes into my head, on the Egyptian bridge and smiling at me like he truly loved me, with the sunlight shining through his hair, making his ink-blue eyes light up...and then the feeling of his mouth on mine...

**8:46 pm:**

But before I can begin rambling on about how much I wish I was a dog, and be able to be in a nice, carefree relationship with another dog, a loud squawking sound catches out attention, and Dwayne, Erica and I, seated in chairs in the corner of the room, all look up. Flora Goodfellow has now gone past the point of tipsy, and is now hanging onto Pip, her arm around his shoulders. Pip looks slightly uncomfortable, but nevertheless, he's helping to hold her up, with all her fairy friends are twittering away at the sight before them.

"Guess what, everyone?" Flora shouts, throwing an arm dramatically up into the air, her huge wings flapping excitedly. "I have decided, less than thirty seconds ago, that I'm getting married again!"

**8:47 pm:**

Oh dear God. All the other fairies are squealing and clapping, and Pip is smiling gently at Flora.

"But Flora, who are you getting married to? We're already married." he explains patiently.

"Well, let's just do it again!" Flora laughs. "Such fun! And Till...Tilly...shopping till...you can be a midesbraid! So can Erica! Won't you?" She looks at me with an earnest face. "And we can have a wedding cake, with frosted glassing, and Dwayne, you can be one of the groomsmen, along with Dante, if Tilly and him are ever, ever, getting back together..." She begins to sing Taylor Swift, waving her hand in the air, before Pip kisses her on the cheek.

"Come on, Flora, let's get you to bed." he says, all the fairies nodding at him in agreement. "You can tell me all about it in the morning." He begins to escort her up the stairs, which all us guests take as the cue to leave.

**8:50 pm:**

The cool night breeze blows around my face as I walk down the street to where my car is parked. The pang in my stomach I felt watching Pip and Flora hasn't lessened. At least they've got each other. They're married. I don't know if I'll ever get married now, given that I've lost Dante.

Suddenly, my phone starts to ring. I check the caller ID and my heart misses a beat.

I'm about to hang up, but then I remember what Ben said to me. '_You have to give Dante a chance to explain himself. Whether you like it or not, you're going to have to hear each other out.'_

**8:52 pm:**

Tentatively, I answer. "Dante?"

"Tilly. Hi." He pauses for a couple of seconds. "Look, I know that you don't want to talk to me, and that you're still really mad at me, but I just...I just have to see you."

"Oh." My mind flounders around for things to say, and eventually comes up with, "Um, I do, too. I want to talk to you. Sort stuff out, you know?" Oh great, my eyes are starting to prick. _Focus, Tilly._

"Great." Dante sounds relieved, presumably thinking that I'd hang up on him and never want to speak to him again. "So, can I come over tomorrow? Because I can't stand you being mad at me. And...I'm sorry. Like, really." He finishes, then there's a silence that seems to stretch on forever. "Tilly?"

**8:54 pm:**

I nod, then remember that he can't see me. "Yeah. Sounds good." I swallow. "See you tomorrow."

**Monday, 11th February**

**3:38 pm:**

Right. I can do this. It's just a question of hearing him out, then deciding where to go from there. I will keep calm and collected, and ignore the part of me inside that is silently screaming, "_What have you got to lose? Just take him back and be done with it!' _

Yeah, not exactly the best way to go. Oh, hell. There's the door. Oh, God. Deep breath, and open the door...

**3:39 pm:**

"Hey girl!" Emelie says eagerly, standing on the sunlit doorstep with Becky nodding by her side. "Has Dante come to talk to you yet? We want to know all the details."

Quickly, I pull them inside into the living room, and hiss, "What are you two _doing_ here?"

Becky looks a bit crestfallen. "Well, you told us this morning that he was coming round to talk to you, so we thought that we'd come and see you, and–"

"Guys, he hasn't been here yet!" I exclaim, irritated. "And besides, you don't really need to know what he's got to say to me, because it's my–"

**3:40 pm:**

The ringing of the doorbell shuts us up. For a second, we stand and listen, then Dante's voice calls out, hesitantly, "Tilly? Are you here?"

My friend's faces mask my expression of both shock and panic. Oh my God. This can't be happening.

"What do we do?" Becky hisses. Emelie's eyes are darting round the room to look for an escape route. Except...there isn't one.

"_Hide!" _I whisper frantically, making shooing gestures with my arm as I leave the room. The two of them dive behind the sofa, and I'm left to open the door to Dante.

**3:42 pm:**

He's standing on the doorstep, wearing dark grey trousers and a white shirt, as good-looking as always. He gives me one of his half-smiles when he looks at me. "So, here I am."

I resist the temptation to a) either slam the door in his face, yelling, "I don't care! If you want to snog your ex, then fine with me!" of b) throw myself onto him and plead him desperately to forgive me. But instead, I say, "Sure. Come on in."

**3:45 pm:**

My heart almost stops when he tries to sit on the sofa that Becky and Emelie are crouched behind. Instead, I shout, "No, no, sit here instead!" pulling him away and leading him over to one of the armchairs, which I practically push him onto. He looks at me, confused.

"I figured that you wouldn't want to sit there, because...I've just had the sofa, erm, re-stuffed." I say, perching on one of the chairs, and trying to figure out what to say next.

**3:47 pm:**

It's been two minutes, and the both of us are sitting there in an awkward silence, not knowing what to say to the other.

_How long will this last?_

**3:48 pm:**

Eventually, Dante breaks the silence. "Look, Tilly, what I really want to say to you is that I'm really, really sorry for what I did at the concert. I shouldn't have let myself stand there and let my ex-girlfriend kiss me like she did, I should have said something, and–" He breaks off and runs a hand through his hair. "What I'm really trying to say is that I should have told you about her and been honest."

I nod, still trying to think of something to say, but not being able to concentrate due to the fact that Becky and Emelie are grinning at me behind the sofa, and that Becky is mouthing something at me. What? I shake my head in confusion, then look up to see Dante looking oddly at me.

"All right, Tilly?"

I nod. "Yes, of course. I'm just trying to say that..." I quickly rack my brains, and eventually come up with, "I'm sorry too, about what I said. I just didn't like what you said to me about not being honest, and the fact that I had fallen in love with Ben. I mean, I didn't know that he batted for the other side at the time! And, I–" I press on, "I think we should agree to tell each other stuff. You know..." My voice trails away.

**3:50 pm:**

"You're right." Dante says thoughtfully. "Let's agree to both be honest with each other, no matter what. Right?" He takes hold of my hand.

"Right." I agree, managing a smile. "It's been really difficult not talking to you. Just saying."

Dante leans forward. "I know. It's also been difficult not doing this, either."

**3:51 pm:**

And before I can say anything, he's kissing me hard, like he hasn't kissed me in years.

_Wowzers._

**3:53 pm:**

I know that this means a massive grilling from Becky and Emelie afterwards, who I know are still hiding behind the sofa, watching the drama all unfold. Probably telepathically demanding me to 'get a room'.

But I have got a room, after all. They're just in it.

And frankly, at the moment, I don't give a damn.

**Valentine's Day**

**8:10 pm:**

It's Valentine's Day today. The day that the world celebrates luurve. Given that it's the second year that I've actually had a proper Valentine (the first time was when I was ten, with this boy in my class who sent me a card with only my name written on it in wonky crayon writing), it's a day worth celebrating.

After I had sent my Egyptian book '_Adventures in Al Simhara' _off in the mail and said goodbye to the pets and Bonehilda, Dante and I went to the movies. I feel I should mention at this point that Lydia and Samuel were engaging in a romantic game of 'round and round the garden', while Fred and his favourite ball of string watched on. Even Bonehilda was sporting a pink apron with hearts patterned on it, and seemed to be in a more giggly mood than ever.

**8:15 pm:**

After the movie, and a walk round the park (at which there was what they call a 'Love Day' celebration occurring), Dante and I met up with Becky and Dennis, Dwayne and Erica, Pip and Flora (it seems as though they are indeed renewing their vows, after sitting down and talking it through) and Emelie and her 'boyfriend' Robert. He's about the same height as Emelie, with dark blonde hair, blue eyes, and casual street style. Even though he's not a vampire, they seem to be a happy couple. Ben was also there, attempting to be happy with all the couples around, but I could tell it was painful for him as well. Poor Ben. Hopefully Abdul gets his act together soon and comes over to visit.

**8:17 pm:**

Flora and Pip seem very excited about their upcoming nuptials, and the fact that Erica and I are indeed going to be bridesmaids. Dante has agreed to be one of the groomsmen, as well as Dwayne, however the two of them agree that they refuse to take part in the traditional 'Hover' event at the wedding, where the bridal party are supplied wings and have to hover over the bride and groom as they make their vows. Flora says that it's only a matter of time before they come round.

**8:19 pm:**

A couple of hours later, Dante and I said goodbye to everyone. He wanted to know if I wanted to go back to my place, but I said that it would be mayhem, due to the fact that Lydia and Samuel would most likely be spending a lot of time in their newly-bought 'dog house', and that Bonehilda may have even bought a male skeleton friend home by the name of Jack Skeletor. You never know.

**8:20 pm:**

I turn round to see Dante standing behind me, a grin on his face. "Should we go upstairs?"

I burst out laughing. "Dante! That sounds so–"

"What?" he asks, wrapping an arm round me.

I quickly shake my head. "Nothing."

He shrugs, still smiling. "Anyway, I know you've secretly been dying for me to do this, so..." Before I can say another word, he's picked me up in his arms, bridal-style, and is carrying me across the room. He has a bit of trouble managing the stairs, but we're both laughing, so it doesn't matter, and all of a sudden, we're in Dante's bedroom, lying on the bed. He pulls me on top of him, then we're making out, it's getting kind of heavy, and then–

**10:27 pm:**

Well, you can probably guess what happens next.

_You know..._

**10:28 pm:**

Happy Valentine's day, Tilly Tierney.

* * *

**What did you think? Anyway, this is the second-to-last chapter of Tilly's diary, so I hope that you liked it. I've got a few things lined up for the next chapter, plus an appearance of someone you may not have seen for a while...any ideas? :)**


	11. Weddings And Endings

**Hi there! So as this is the last chapter of Tilly's story for you all, which I hope you enjoy :) Thank you all so much for your uplifting reviews and favourites, it means the world to me!**

**Now, here we go...**

* * *

**Friday, 15th February**

**9:10 am:**

Mmmm. So _this_ is what it must feel like to be in paradise. I think so, anyway.

Dante is still asleep, lying in bed beside me, looking so cute when he's asleep. And hot. He is anyway, so it doesn't really matter. Pulling the duvet round me, I stare at the ceiling and let thoughts run round my head.

Last night was...

**9:15 am:**

I don't think I really need to explain anything. You probably get the picture, even though you probably don't want to. Just, _wow._

"Morning, beautiful."

I start suddenly and glance round at Dante's voice. He's lying on his side, smiling at me. "Sorry, didn't mean to startle you."

I snuggle back under the covers and smile at him. "No, it's OK. I was just, thinking about...stuff."

"Right." Dante raises an eyebrow at me. "Like, how amazing last night was?"

"You got it." I giggle. I can't think of what to say for a couple of seconds, then add, "How about you?"

Dante nods. "Tilly, that was the _best._ You're the best, ever. And I had fun."

I can't stop the grin from unfurling on my face. "Yeah. Me too."

_Two weeks later..._

**Sunday, 3rd March**

**10:23 am:**

Preparations for Flora and Pip's second wedding are well underway. May I just say that Flora is absolutely buzzing with excitement about the whole thing. Pip however, prefers to stay out of it all, and is content enough just to stay in the background watching it all unfold.

Unfortunately, today is an exception.

Which is why Pip and I are sitting in the local salon outside Flora's dressing room. I don't even know why we're here in the first place, even though Flora insisted that I must come with her for opinion, and that she practically dragged a protesting Pip out to the car to come here. I know he doesn't mind, though. I don't think so, anyway.

"Can you please tell us what sort of outfits you're putting on?" I beg. "I mean, how many new clothes do you need just for one wedding?"

"I'll be out in a minute!" Flora trills from behind the curtain. "Now, when I flutter out, I need you and Pip to give each of the outfits a rating out of ten for colour, material, elegance and suchlike."

**10:27 am:**

Wait a minute. Did she just say–

"Ta-da!" The curtain whips back and Flora steps out, beaming, in a white flowy wedding dress. The bodice is made of smooth white chiffon and doesn't look too bad, but the ball gown itself looks as if it's been caught in an explosion of lace and white ribbon.

_Death by wedding dress?_ I think, as I muster up an expression of wonder and say, with a surprised air, "Gosh, Flora, you look wonderful!"

Flora twirls round in front of the mirror. "Isn't it fabulous, Tilly?" Then she stops and looks at herself properly. "Aside from looking like a giant pavalova, I mean."

**10:30 am:**

Pip is the next to speak. "Darling, even though I think you look gorgeous in and out of anything–"

_Urgh! Even the notion!_

"–I think that you can do a lot better." He smiles at Flora, who twinkles back at him.

"Very well, I think so too." She flounces back into the changing room and whips the curtain shut. "And while I'm trying these other nine dresses on, you two can start looking for your own wedding gear!"

**10:34 am:**

As Pip and I are looking through racks of tuxedos and bridesmaids' dresses, a sudden thought occurs to me. "Pip, I thought that the groom wasn't meant to see the bride in her dress until the wedding day."

"The groom isn't usually supposed to," he replies, as Flora waltzes round in a purple mermaid dress, humming the Bridal March tune to herself, "but Flora said that since we've already been married, it doesn't matter anyway."

"Should it?" I grab a satin turquoise dress from the rack and hold it up. It's quite a nice colour, with sparkly sequins round the waistline. "I mean, doesn't Flora want to surprise you?"

Pip shrugs. "I don't know, Tilly. But you know, at the end of the day, it's not about the dress or the flowers, it's about the fact that you get to spend the rest of your life with that person and be happy about it."

**11:57 am:**

As I pull open the door of the house, Lydia and Fred trot into the hallway to greet me. I fuss over them, and fill their bowls, though I notice that Lydia's stomach has suspiciously gotten a bit bigger. Hmm. Never noticed that before.

I'm just in the process of going to check the mail (mainly to see if my Egyptian book has made it into the Bestsellers list) when my mobile rings. It's Emelie.

"Hey Emelie!" I say brightly, half-expecting her to launch into a spiel about a) Robert, b) Dante, c) guys in general or d) the weather. But instead she totally surprises me by saying, "After we've all exchanged our Valentine's stories, I have got to tell you about the most brilliant idea I've ever had in the history of brilliant ideas!"

**12:00 pm:**

"Should I be worried?" I ask cynically. "Because if this idea involves massive big dogs which are the size of Great Danes, or having to make our own nectar for Flora's pre-wedding party, then I'm–"

"No, none of that, but just listen!" Emelie says excitedly. "I was thinking about what we all did for Valentine's Day, and I realised that _one_ of us didn't have a date. Which was Ben. Right?"

**12:01 pm:**

"Right." I still have no idea what she's going on about.

"And then I thought about what you told me about when you went to Egypt, all those adventures you had, and you and Dante got together, and about Ben, because...well, he was, wasn't he?"

I fight the urge to scream down the phone at her and ask her to tell me what the hell is going on, and instead say, "He was _what_?"

Emelie ignores me and ploughs on, still not making any sense whatsoever. "I came up with the idea last night, and I think it's going to be a great one, and you're going to be able to see each other again and Ben will be happy, and–" She lowers her voice to a whisper, even though we're on the phone, and tells me her idea.

**12:03 pm:**

_Brilliant,_ I think to myself as I hang up and go and check the mail. _Emelie's idea is going to be a very successful one indeed._

**Wednesday, 6th March**

**2:30 pm:**

I'm over at Dwayne and Erica's house with Becky at the moment, talking about just about everything. Erica's all excited about the upcoming second nuptials of the Goodfellows, mainly because she gets to wear a dress that 'doesn't smother me in silk' as she puts it. At Becky's and my questioning looks, Dwayne says, "At our wedding, she got so irritated with her dress that she scratched it right off. Bits of silk and ribbon were everywhere." He takes a sip of coffee then adds, "Could have been a whole lot worse, though. At least she was wearing a petticoat underneath that was made of elastic."

Great. Thanks, Dwayne.

**2:35 pm:**

Erica and Becky both want to know about how the pets are getting on, so I tell them, as well as telling them about Lydia's recent growth in the girth area, receiving two different opinions. Erica says that Lydia should lay off the pet treats, while Becky said that there is a possibility that I could be hearing the pitter-patter of puppy feet soon enough.

**2:45 pm:**

I laughed and said that I don't think that it could be a possibility. Dwayne then said, "That's a shame. You could have trained the two of them to howl a doggy wedding song at the reception." He added, "With me helping them, of course."

**2:47 pm:**

If that happens, I'm not coming to the wedding. No way.

I wouldn't pass up the opportunity of seeing Dante in a tux, though.

**2:48 pm:**

I mean, who would?

**5:17 pm:**

Oh joy and utter rapture! My Egyptian book has been placed on the 'Shortlisted Sellers' list and to top it off, I have earned a couple of thousand dollars. That will help me get somewhere in life, at least. I think I'll buy a new car soon, so there's a literal meaning to that.

**5:19 pm:**

I hear a muffled meow coming from behind me, and turn around to see Fred walking towards me, carrying something in his mouth, which looks a lot like a stuffed toy. Maybe he brought it in from off the street?

"Well done, Fred! Where did you find it?" I ask, petting him and crouching down to look at the item. He drops it on the floor beside him and looks at it warily. The toy, or whatever it is is shaped like a bunny, with one ear longer than the other, wide white staring eyes and a toothy felt grin on its face.

**5:20 pm:**

Creepy.

Fred doesn't seem to like it much either. Maybe it's because the bunny's eyes just stare and stare at you, and now Fred seems to realize what it feels like.

"Come on, then." I say, picking him up and scratching him behind the ears. "Let's leave Mr Creepy Bunny to his own devices. We've got work to do."

**Sunday, 10th March**

**10:16 am:**

So, here we are. The day of Pip and Flora's wedding. A lot (and I do mean a LOT) of planning has been done these past couple of weeks. The bride and bridal party's outfits have been decided upon, which took nearly a century and a half to organise. The flower arrangements have been sorted, along with the wedding transport, the size of the cake and everything else. Including Emelie's and my plan (which we have now let Becky in on, though she's been sworn to secrecy and promised not to tell anyone. Hopefully everything will go down as perfectly as it can. Then again, anything concerning Flora I'm not so sure about.

**10:20 am:**

But that's not all. The biggest shock of all is that Lydia is pregnant!

I hope that, minxy canine though she is, she won't be seen as a laughing stock in the world of dogs. When I told Ben about it, he said not to worry, and that these things happen, etc. Still, I guess he's right. Flora insisted that both the pets _and _Bonehilda come to the wedding. I was about to put my foot down with a firm no, but in the end I relented, after Flora pleaded with me. Now I'm glad I didn't say no. Lydia and Fred have got big red bows tied round their necks, and Bonehilda is wearing a sort of white dress that contrasts nicely with her, erm, bones.

**10:21 am:**

"Ready to go, Tilly?" Dante sticks his head round the door and grins at me as he takes in my appearance. "You look beautiful."

"Thanks." I reply, giving him a showy twirl to show off my strapless turquoise dress with the sequins. "You don't look so bad yourself."

He pulls the jacket of his tux straight, then takes my arm and bows in a ridiculously affected manner. "May I?"

"Sure." I giggle, giving him a quick kiss. "Let's go."

**10:25 am:**

Unlike the traditional wedding ceremony, the whole bridal party arrives together, with Pip and Flora arriving separately a half-hour or so later. The venue (which is a church-like stone building with stained glass and a fountain in the middle) looks just amazing, with classical music playing and flowers beside every pew. White, silver and purple balloons are tied onto all the seats, with a curved archway at the altar.

"I'm just going to talk to the other girls, so I'll see you in a bit." I say to Dante, kissing his cheek and going to find Becky and Emelie, who are engaged in conversation with Ben, who is looking striking in a dark grey tuxedo. Becky is wearing a midnight blue gown with sequins and matching shoes, while Emelie is wearing a short golden dress with strappy sandals.

**10:27 am:**

"So," Emelie asks him, "Did you come here with anyone, Ben?"

Ben shakes his head. "I wish, but no. It's fine, though," he adds quickly, as all our faces become a mixture of sympathy.

"We'll keep you company for the wedding, don't worry." Becky says, putting an arm round him and giving him a half-hug.

Ben laughs. "It's OK. You've all got dates. I'll just be by myself."

"No you won't."

I wish that I could photograph the look on Ben's face as Abdul walks towards us, beaming, in a white suit. At last, he finds his voice. "Abdul! You never said that you were coming!"

"It was all part of the plan, you see." he says to Ben, as Emelie, Becky and I nod at him proudly. "After Tilly got in touch and explained the plan to me, I knew at once what was to be done."

**10:30 am:**

Ben laughs and hugs Abdul. "Thank you for coming." He turns and looks at us. "And thank _you_ all, especially! This is...amazing." He hugs the three of us tightly. "Amazing."

"We'll leave you two." Emelie says simply, winking at Ben then hurrying off down the hallway, with Becky and I hastening after her.

"They'll probably be all coupled up by the end of the night." Becky giggles, which then sets us off.

**10:32 am:**

There's always something special about weddings, isn't there?

**11:22 am:**

The wedding ceremony was just beautiful. Flora arrived in the most unusual way seated sideways on a broomstick, alongside her mother Dahlia and her father, who was steering it. And her A-line dress was white, with short sleeves and a lacy bodice that suited her perfectly. She literally floated down the aisle when the organist started playing 'Going To The Chapel', with Erica and I walking behind her. Vows were said, rings exchanged, and even Dante didn't protest when the 'Hover' event occurred. I think that it was probably because the wings weren't as huge as we'd expected.

**11:30 am:**

Then after the fairy dust had been thrown when we'd made our way back down the aisle, it was time for the reception, the cutting of the cake, and the dancing. Which is where we're at now. Pip and Flora are doing what they call a 'fairy waltz', Fred and Lydia are prancing round their own little corner of the dance floor, Emelie is swaying to and fro with Robert, Becky is dancing with Dennis, Dwayne with Erica. Even (!) Abdul and Ben are dancing together.

I feel a tap on my shoulder. "Care to dance, Tilly?"

I barely have time to say yes before Dante pulls me to my feet and onto the dance floor. We sway back and forth for a minute or so before he asks, "So what did you give Flora as a wedding present?"

**11:32 am:**

I grin as I answer. "Technically though Fred found it for me, Flora seems delighted with it." I glance at the top table and my eyes land on the bunny, which is standing upright, right beside a glass of juice. _Strange. That wasn't where I'd left it. _"You know, if we ever get married–"

"You know I want to get married to nobody apart from you." Dante replies, taking hold of my hand.

I smile at him. "Well, say when we _do_ get married, I want our wedding to be just like this."

"Me too." He leans in and kisses me, but then we're cut short by Flora announcing, "Right, ladies, it's time for me to throw my bouquet now!"

A squeal of excitement erupts from many of the girls as they hurry forward into the centre of the room, everyone else making way for them. Dante grins at me. "Aren't you going to catch it, then?"

I roll my eyes. "Oh, please. Don't tell me you believe in all that superstitious nonsense."

**11:33 am:**

As Flora throws her bouquet high into the air, all of a sudden, I can't help myself. I push forward into the crowd, watching it fall as if in slow motion, when–

I straighten up, clutching it in my hands as the other guests applaud. Dante stands there, wearing a look that says, _I told you so._

"Well, then!" I look round, beaming. "Guess it's going to be me, then!"

**11:35 am:**

Maybe when Dante and I do get married, it may even be later this year. I hope we have a bright future together, because it certainly looks it. Lydia's puppies will be boucy and roly-poly, and even Becky might someday have a baby of her own, as will Emelie, and me. Hopefully. And if Abdul decides to stay in Moonlight Falls, he and Ben may even become partners and then, if the law allows it, get married. Maybe I'll take Dante to Bridgeport to meet Mum and the rest of my family, and maybe Becky and Emelie will come along for the ride.

Then again, who knows?

But I hope that, whatever happens, we'll all be in together.

* * *

**So there you go :) What did you think? I really hope that you enjoyed reading this story (despite many breaks between the chapters, haha) and just...thanks for reading!**


	12. BONUS: The Best Of Bonehilda

**OK. So, just for a treat, I decided to include Tilly's 'The Best Of Bonehilda' little column that she wrote earlier on in the novel as it has been mentioned quite a bit!**

* * *

**THE BEST OF BONEHILDA**

**Why having a skeleton in your closet may be a good thing**

Author: Tilly Tierney

Many people think of the term '_skeleton in the closet'_ as an embarrassing, awkward fact that a certain someone wishes to keep hidden from the world. A secret that, once swept under the rug or hidden in the dusty closet of unwanted memories, remains never to be seen or heard from again. And as much as you wished it to go away, there it stays at the back of the closet, gathering dust until that someone either pretends it doesn't exist or opens the closet door–where the bare bones of what's left fall out and shatter into a million pieces on the carpet. And quite often, those pieces are swept under the rug, never to be thought of or seen again.

But what many people don't know is that having a skeleton in the closet, literally, could lend you a helping hand. A skeletal hand, but still, at the very least, a hand. Enter Bonehilda. A walking, non-talking skeleton that will willingly clean your house from top to bottom. Her only request is that you will let her live in peace in your house, in her closet, undisturbed for twenty four hours, seven days a week. Apart from when she is summoned from the depths of her closet, to clean your house for the seventh time that week.

Bonehilda certainly isn't one of those skeletons that is considered embarrassing and awkward. Even though it may seem very strange to have a skeleton walking around your house in a black and white maid's apron, many people are used to it. But the consequences may be disastrous, if, for example, you have hired another maid over the phone who you assigned to clean your house in the first place. The sight of seeing a skeleton walking round the house cleaning the kitchen counters and sweeping the floors may scare her. Correction: this _will_ scare her. I have a friend who I was talking to the other day about this very experience. My skeleton, she said, had just appeared at the front door to do some dusting, in full view of the maid, who was bringing in the newspaper. The maid gave a scream, dropped the paper and ran full tilt down the street in terror. This attracted the attention of the dog, who ran merrily down the street after her, thinking that it was all a a game. Meanwhile, the skeleton calmly finished dusting the interior of the doorframe and moved onto watering the plants in the front garden. All this happened two days after my friend had bought her Bonehilda. So, if you ever do buy your own skeleton, just make sure you're ready to deal with the consequences if you've hired an extra maid. Just so you know.

Like your traditional skeleton in a closet, Bonehilda lives in a spacious wooden closet, placed anywhere you choose, even up in the attic. Does the closet ever gather dust? I think not. But then, what does the inside of her closet look like? Surely it must be a comfortable haven? Even though nobody else is said to have actually seen the interior of the closet, I have, however, managed to catch a quick glimpse of what I thought to be a duster hanging on a hook on the door. But beyond that, before the door quickly swung shut, is the darkness of the unknown. So surely Bonehilda must keep the inside of her closet as spick-and-span as everywhere else.

However, this skeleton certainly doesn't stay at the back of the closet when there's cleaning work to be done. As long as she's able to don her black and white apron, she's happy. And Bonehilda certainly doesn't sweep anything under any rug, for that matter...not pun intended, or course. Not even your sneaky 'just-one-time-for-a-special-occasion' chocolate gâteaux crumbs left over from Saturday's glutton feast that you now feel tremendously guilty about. Yet, Bonehilda pulls back rug and sweeps crumbs away, with no judgement whatsoever. True, maybe it's partly because she can't talk, but partly because she's only too happy to get on with the cleaning job.

Looking for your own skeleton? My advice is to buy your own Bonehilda. Cost-free, guilt-free, and comes with own closet. Just make sure that you don't hire a second maid to get your house cleaned quicker...even if one is more able-bodied than the other. Pun intended.


End file.
